How does the foraging pattern of the herring gull (Larus argentatus) respond with different salinity water levels? The salinity between salt and fresh water is significant. Fresh water makes up only about 1% of all the planet's water bodies. All freshwater habitats are made up by the physical properties of water, H2O, a single oxygen atom with two hydrogen atoms attached. While salt water consist of 9 ions: sodium, Magnesium, Calcium, Potassium, Chlorine, and Sulfate. Sodium and Chlorine are most abundant, (Ford, N.D.). During this study it has come to our attention that herring gulls tend to forge when there are fewer, other gulls around and when the tide is low. This gives the herring gull a better chance of finding food. The purpose of this experiment is due to the importance of the conservancy efforts given. Changes with the ecosystem can cause changes in behaviors in shorebirds if not a decline in population (Rowell-Garvon, & Withers, 2009). Counting the number of herring gulls on Oso Bay (which has a less salinity concentration) and observing their behaviors and counting the number of herring gulls on Corpus Christi Bay (higher salinity concentration) will produce an obvious pattern of whether or not the seagulls prefer a higher salinity gradient or a lower one based on if they are foraging for food. .
During this experiment it was shown that when there were other gulls around and there is a high tide there were fewer herring gulls. We went out on March 20, during the morning, around 11am, it was partly cloudy and 66 degrees outside, and the winds were pretty high as well as the tide. There were only eighteen herring gulls present and a total of 95 other gulls, located at McCaughan Park (Corpus Christi Bay) and none of the herring gulls were foraging. While on March fifth, at Oso Bay, it was partly cloudy semi high winds and 55 degrees -outside, there were twenty-five gulls foraging out of twenty-eight.
