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«IZVESTIYA IRKUTSKOGO GOSUDARSTVENNOGO UNIVERSITETA». SERIYA «BIOLOGIYA. ECOLOGIYA»
«THE BULLETIN OF IRKUTSK STATE UNIVERSITY». SERIES «BIOLOGY. ECOLOGY»
ISSN 2073-3372 (Print)

List of issues > Series «Biology. Ecology». 2025. Vol 54

Kleptoparasitism and Predation of the Mongolian Gull Larus mongolicus (Sushkin, 1925): Interactions with the Great Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo (Linnaeus, 1758) on Lake Baikal

Author(s)

Yu. I. Mel’nikov, Ya. V. Nikolaev

Baikal Museum SB RAS, Listvyanka, Russian Federation

Abstract
By the time of the mass arrival of the Great Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo (Linnaeus, 1758) on Lake Baikal, kleptoparasitism and predation by large gulls were already widespread. Kleptoparasitism has always been a common feeding strategy for all gull species on Lake Baikal. In the wild, fish comprised between 76.3% and 96.1% of the gulls' diet at this time, with the proportion of Baikal Omul Coregonus migratorius (Georgi, 1775) fluctuating between 36.1% and 42.5%, while the chicks' nutritional status was 80.0%. High water levels in the Selenga River delta facilitated the formation of very large and dense nesting aggregations of wading and waterfowl. The high prey density and availability, particularly of eggs and hatchlings, contributed to some Mongolian Gulls (Larus mongolicus, Sushkin, 1928) adopting compulsive predation (swallowing any food item of suitable size "for testing"). Predation was an additional feeding strategy and was observed in gull colonies during periods of mass mortality of their downy chicks. At the same time, some Mongolian Gulls began to adopt active predation, and nest and chick losses among small gull species and waterfowl increased sharply. A shift to sophisticated predation (killing and eating healthy individuals of their own species) was also observed in some birds. Due to the significant depletion of Lake Baikal's fish resources, food shortages began to be felt by large gulls by the end of the last century, but they were not yet critical. However, the mass appearance of the great cormorant at the beginning of the 21st century dramatically changed the situation. It is a highly specialized fish feeder, but like any predator, it primarily targets sick, weakened, or helminth-infested individuals. Under these conditions, the intensity of starvation among gulls increased dramatically. At the same time, the nutritional status of Mongolian Gull chicks has sharply declined–usually ranging from 5.0% to 10.0% of the individuals examined. Even the great cormorant's diet is being replaced by secondary food groups, consisting of invertebrates (Baikal gammarids and aquatic insect larvae), as well as associated components–fragments of Baikal sponges and aquatic plants, soil, and even berries. While the Great Cormorant's diet of omul has sharply declined, the proportion of cottid fish in its diet has significantly increased. In this situation, gulls have been observed switching to secondary, often atypical, food resources, as well as increasing the use of kleptoparasitism and predation. Mongolian Gulls raid Great Cormorant nests in large numbers. By the mid-2020s, the majority of Mongolian Gull pellets consisted of the down and feathers of Great Cormorant chicks. This gull species successfully preys even on young Great Cormorants and adult Waterfowl, which is only possible through sophisticated predation. Consequently, under conditions of severe shortage of natural food sources, the Mongolian Gull easily switches to active and sophisticated predation. The Great Cormorant, despite its large size, due to its profound morphological adaptation to foraging in the water column, cannot successfully repel attacks by the Mongolian Gull, and its chicks and young birds become a common food source for the Mongolian Gull. Undoubtedly, the development of active predation by the Mongolian Gull is associated with necrophagy and compulsive predation. At the same time, for cannibalism to develop, birds must overcome the species-specific behavioral stereotype that prohibits them from eating members of their own species. Clearly, a specific situation is required for this prohibition to be overcome. This situation is clearly related to severe starvation and the presence of a sufficiently large specimens of dead members of their own species.
About the Authors

Mel’nikov Yuriy Ivanovich, Candidate of Sciences (Biology), Senior Research Scientist Baikal Museum SB RAS 1, Akademicheskaya st., Listvyanka settl., Irkutsk Region, 664520, Russian Federation e-mail: yumel48@mail.ru 

Nikolaev Yakov Valentinovich, Postgraduate Baikal Museum SB RAS 1, Akademicheskaya st., Listvyanka settl., Irkutsk Region, 664520, Russian Federation e-mail: thunder-91@mail.ru

For citation
Mel’nikov Yu.I., Nikolaev Ya.V. Kleptoparasitism and Predation of the Mongolian Gull Larus mongolicus (Sushkin, 1925): Interactions with the Great Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo (Linnaeus, 1758) on Lake Baikal. The Bulletin of Irkutsk State University. Series Biology. Ecology, 2025, vol. 54, pp. 69-82. https://doi.org/10.26516/2073-3372.2025.54.69 (in Russian)
Keywords
Mongolian Gull, Great Cormorant, food shortage, kleptoparasitism, predation.
UDC
591.557:598.243.8+598.235.4
DOI
https://doi.org/10.26516/2073-3372.2025.54.69
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