Researchers hope to save seabirds by calculating the value of their
excrement

Date:
August 6, 2020
Source:
Cell Press
Summary:
To raise awareness of the importance of seabirds to people and the
ecosystems we depend on, a new article looks at something that most
of us find off-putting: their feces. The researchers say that the
feces, known as guano and which serves as a source of fertilizer
and a key contribution to marine ecosystems, could be worth more
than $470 million annually.



FULL STORY ========================================================================== Seabird species such as gulls and pelicans are often overlooked when it
comes to conservation and can struggle to capture the public eye. To raise awareness of their importance to people and the ecosystems we depend on,
a Science & Society article appearing August 6 in the journal Trends in
Ecology & Evolution looks at something that most of us find off-putting:
their poop. The researchers say that the poop, which is also known as
guano and serves as a source of fertilizer and a key contribution to
coastal and marine ecosystems, could be worth more than $470 million
annually. By calculating this direct benefit to people, they hope to
quantify the importance of seabirds and illustrate the monetary cost of declining populations.


========================================================================== "Guano production is an ecosystem service made by seabirds at no cost
to us - - I can go to an island, collect the guano, and sell it at
market price as fertilizer," says co-author Marcus V. Cianciaruso,
ecology professor at the Federal University of Goia's in Brazil. While
few seabird species produce guano that is currently commercialized, the
rest provide important nutrients to the ecosystems where their guano is deposited. "Because there is this scientific and biological importance,
it's possible to quantify seabird ecosystem services in a language that
the general public and policymakers can begin to understand," he says.

To do this, Cianciaruso and Daniel Plazas-Jime'nez, a PhD student at
the Federal University of Goia's, began by gathering data about global
seabird populations producing commodifiable guano. "Because guano is a commodity, we used its market price to estimate the added value of guano produced by seabirds each year," says Plazas-Jime'nez.

For the species that do not produce commodifiable guano, the researchers
then estimated the value of nitrogen and phosphorus deposited every year
in their colonies by calculating the cost to replace these nutrients
with inorganic versions. The result is staggering: when combined,
the nutrient deposition and the commodifiable guano could be worth an
estimated $473.83 million per year.

Although not all guano can be commodified, these nutrients that it
deposits are important to ecosystems such as coral reefs, where guano's presence can increase reef fish biomass by up to 48%. "We made a very conservative estimate that 10% of coral reef fish stocks depend on seabird nutrients," says Plazas- Jime'nez. "According to the United Nations and
the Australian government, the annual economic returns of commercial
fisheries on coral reefs is over $6 billion. So, 10% of this value
is around $600 million per year." When added to the previous figure,
the value of nutrients deposited by seabirds increases to an estimated
$1 billion.

Much of this value comes from threatened or endangered species. "The
example of coral reefs is just for a little group of seabirds," says Plazas-Jime'nez. "A huge amount of nutrient deposition happens in
Antarctic ecosystems: penguins contribute half of the nitrogen and
phosphorus deposited by seabirds every year. However, 60% of this
contribution is made by penguin species with declining populations,
and these contributions will decrease in the future if no conservation
activity is taken." The researchers hope this paper will shed light on
how valuable these species are at a global scale. "Seabirds have a lot
of importance to people," says Plazas-Jime'nez. "Being able to calculate
a monetary value of an ecological function made by a particular species
is just another tool in the conservation toolbox." Only a fraction of
the value of seabirds to ecosystems and to people is represented by this estimate -- among other functions, they contribute to vast birdwatching
and tourism industries around the world. "If you start to look into
every function that seabirds have and try to monetize this, the value
is going to be much, much higher," says Cianciaruso.

Their estimate also doesn't account for the local importance of the
birds. For many coastal communities, the direct and indirect benefits of
living with them are essential. "In some areas, fishermen follow seabirds
to find places to fish," says Plazas-Jime'nez. "To that fisherman,
seabirds are everything."

========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by Cell_Press. Note: Content may be
edited for style and length.


========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Daniel Plazas-Jime'nez, Marcus V. Cianciaruso. Valuing Ecosystem
Services
Can Help to Save Seabirds. Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 2020;
DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2020.06.008 ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/08/200806111852.htm

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