Multi-predator feeding aggregations: understanding dynamic communities through functional niches and demographic analysis tools

Multi-predator feeding aggregations (MPFAs) are ocean events whereby two or more species forage on the same or co-occurring prey. Such communities are dynamic, with community structure reflecting the connections between species and the benefits and costs of associations. The analysis of MPFAs provides an overview of ecosystem health, with social networks reflecting prey and available resources. Demographic analyses of MPFAs can act as process-based indicators of community responses to rapid change. To understand complex community dynamics, we identified community types in MPFAs using hierarchical clustering and determined the social associations and roles of the different species present. We collected data on 179 MPFA events, recording 55.4 hours of behavioural observations from 33 843 individuals belonging to 19 seabird and three cetacean species in the Hauraki Gulf, New Zealand. Eight MPFA community types were identified, representing planktivorous, scavenger or polytrophic aggregations. Seabird-cetacean and seabird-seabird associations dominated species associations. We interpret the species' roles by combining our observations of behavioural states with knowledge from the literature. The study of marine MPFAs offers a community-level perspective for understanding community dynamics and food-web organization under future ecosystem changes. Using social network analyses, we advance the understanding of species interconnectedness to better inform ecosystem-based conservation management. This article is part of the theme issue 'Multi-predator feeding aggregations in the pelagic waters'.