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With accelerating climate variability and change, novel approaches are needed to warn managers of changing ecosystem state and to identify appropriate management actions. One strategy is using indicator species - like seabirds as ecosystem sentinels - to monitor changes in marine environments. Here, we explore the utility of western gullsbreeding on Southeast Farallon Island as a proxy of ecosystem state in coastal California by investigating the interannual variability in gull foraging behavior from 2013-19 in relation to upwelling conditions, prey abundances, and overlap with humpback whales as gulls frequently feed in association with whales. Western gulls have a flexible diet and forage on land and at-sea. We combined gull GPS tracking data during the incubation phase, ecosystem survey data on multiple predator and prey species, and derived oceanographic upwelling products. When foraging at sea, gulls overlapped with cool upwelled waters. During 2015-17, 25% more gull foraging trip

Farallon islandsUnited statesNew yorkUnited kingdomPalo altoStanford universityCity ofSan franciscoSan jose state universitySan francisco bayMonterey bayNorthwest fisheries science centerVan waerebeekGull larusSanta cruz oceanPacific ocean