Approaches to evaluating and testing of CEMP methods for parameters A1, A5 and A7

The methods and presentation of CEMP parameters A1, A5 and A7 where evaluated using simulated time-series data. The effects of sampling timing and intensity during five-day periods for measures of arrival and fledging mass suggested that situations where sampling is distributed unevenly around the peak arrival/fledging date may introduce substantial bias in CEMP parameters A1and A7. The description of foraging trip duration using the mean arising from a bimodal distribution of trip durations may provide a useful index of foraging performance, however, the use of the 90th percentile of the cumulative foraging effort may provide a more sensitive measure of changes arising from changes in foraging strategies of penguins.