Daily Energy Expenditure and Energy Utilization of Free-Ranging Black-Legged Kittiwakes

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Abstract
Rates of CO2 production by breeding Black-legged Kittiwakes (Rissa tridactyla) (mean mass, 386 g) were measured by using doubly-labeled water. Kittiwakes alternated days on and off the nest, while they brooded their nestlings. Field metabolic rates (FMR) in nonforaging birds averaged 2.43 ml CO2/g .cntdot. hr, or 596 kJ/day. This is 1.9 times the basal metabolic rate (BMR), measured in the laboratory to be 1.31 ml CO2/g .cntdot. hr, or 314 kJ/day. FMRs in foraging birds averaged 4.04 ml CO2/g .cntdot. hr, or 992 kJ/day which is 3.2 times BMR. FMRs in foraging birds averaged 4.04 ml CO2/g .cntdot. hr, or 992 kJ/day which is 3.2 times BMR. The rate of food consumption by an adult kittiwake, calculated on the basis of the chemical composition and digestibility of capelin (Mallotus villosus, the most important dietary item at Hopen Island) was 315 g of fresh matter per bird every other day. A colony of 3,000 breeding pairs of kittiwakes at Hopen Island, using the fishing grounds around the island, using the fishing grounds around the island, would consume about 1,245 kg of fresh fish per day, and add about 76 kg (dry matter) of guano to the marine ecosystem during the chick-rearing period.

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