Benefits of group foraging depend on prey type in a small marine predator, the Little Penguin Sutton, Grace J., Hoskins, Andrew J. and Arnould, John P.Y. 2015, Benefits of group foraging depend on prey type in a small marine predator, the Little Penguin, PLoS One, vol. 10, no. 12, Article Number : e0144297, pp. 1-10, doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0144297. Attached Files Name Description MIMEType Size Downloads sutton-benefitsofgroup-2015.pdf Published version application/pdf 1.89MB 99 Title Benefits of group foraging depend on prey type in a small marine predator, the Little Penguin Author(s) Sutton, Grace J. Hoskins, Andrew J. Arnould, John P.Y. orcid.org/0000-0003-1124-9330 Journal name PLoS One Volume number 10 Issue number 12 Season Article Number : e0144297 Start page 1 End page 10 Total pages 10 Publisher Public Library of Science (PLOS) Place of publication San Francisco, Calif. Publication date 2015 ISSN 1932-6203 Summary Group foraging provides predators with advantages in over-powering prey larger than themselves or in aggregating small prey for efficient exploitation. For group-living predatory species, cooperative hunting strategies provide inclusive fitness benefits. However, for colonial-breeding predators, the benefit pay-offs of group foraging are less clear due to the potential for intra-specific competition. We used animal-borne cameras to determine the prey types, hunting strategies, and success of little penguins (Eudyptula minor), a small, colonial breeding air-breathing marine predator that has recently been shown to display extensive at-sea foraging associations with conspecifics. Regardless of prey type, little penguins had a higher probability of associating with conspecifics when hunting prey that were aggregated than when prey were solitary. In addition, success was greater when individuals hunted schooling rather than solitary prey. Surprisingly, however, success on schooling prey was similar or greater when individuals hunted on their own than when with conspecifics. These findings suggest individuals may be trading-off the energetic gains of solitary hunting for an increased probability of detecting prey within a spatially and temporally variable prey field by associating with conspecifics. Language eng DOI 10.1371/journal.pone.0144297 Field of Research 060201 Behavioural Ecology 060205 Marine and Estuarine Ecology (incl Marine Ichthyology) Socio Economic Objective 970106 Expanding Knowledge in the Biological Sciences HERDC Research category C1 Refereed article in a scholarly journal ERA Research output type C Journal article Copyright notice ©2015, Public Library of Science (PLOS) Free to Read? Yes Persistent URL http://hdl.handle.net/10536/DRO/DU:30080470 Document type: Journal Article Collections: Faculty of Science, Engineering and Built Environment School of Life and Environmental Sciences Open Access Collection Centre for Integrative Ecology Related Links Link Description Connect to Elements publication management system Go to link with your DU access privileges   Connect to published version Go to link with your DU access privileges     Unless expressly stated otherwise, the copyright for items in DRO is owned by the author, with all rights reserved. Every reasonable effort has been made to ensure that permission has been obtained for items included in DRO. If you believe that your rights have been infringed by this repository, please contact drosupport@deakin.edu.au. Versions Version Filter Type Wed, 06 Jan 2016, 11:28:28 EST Thu, 07 Jan 2016, 04:02:14 EST Thu, 07 Jan 2016, 05:08:54 EST Wed, 17 Feb 2016, 10:48:31 EST Wed, 17 Feb 2016, 10:50:52 EST Wed, 17 Feb 2016, 12:51:38 EST Mon, 18 Jul 2016, 15:53:30 EST Wed, 07 Sep 2016, 11:00:32 EST Wed, 09 Nov 2016, 11:39:36 EST Wed, 06 Dec 2017, 06:49:37 EST Fri, 07 Sep 2018, 17:40:38 EST Filtered Full Citation counts:   Cited 36 times in TR Web of Science Cited 36 times in Scopus Search Google Scholar Access Statistics: 531 Abstract Views, 100 File Downloads  -  Detailed Statistics Created: Wed, 06 Jan 2016, 11:28:28 EST