Regional Variation in Winter Foraging Strategies by Weddell Seals in Eastern Antarctica and the Ross Sea
The relative importance of intrinsic and extrinsic determinants of animal foraging is often difficult to quantify. The most southerly breeding mammal, the Weddell seal, remains in the Antarctic pack-ice year-round. We compared Weddell seals tagged at three geographically and hydrographically distinc...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2021-09-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Marine Science |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2021.720335/full |
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| author | Rob Harcourt Mark A. Hindell Clive R. McMahon Clive R. McMahon Clive R. McMahon Kimberly T. Goetz Kimberly T. Goetz Jean-Benoit Charrassin Karine Heerah Rachel Holser Ian D. Jonsen Michelle R. Shero Xavier Hoenner Rose Foster Baukje Lenting Esther Tarszisz Matthew Harry Pinkerton |
| author_facet | Rob Harcourt Mark A. Hindell Clive R. McMahon Clive R. McMahon Clive R. McMahon Kimberly T. Goetz Kimberly T. Goetz Jean-Benoit Charrassin Karine Heerah Rachel Holser Ian D. Jonsen Michelle R. Shero Xavier Hoenner Rose Foster Baukje Lenting Esther Tarszisz Matthew Harry Pinkerton |
| author_sort | Rob Harcourt |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The relative importance of intrinsic and extrinsic determinants of animal foraging is often difficult to quantify. The most southerly breeding mammal, the Weddell seal, remains in the Antarctic pack-ice year-round. We compared Weddell seals tagged at three geographically and hydrographically distinct locations in East Antarctica (Prydz Bay, Terre Adélie, and the Ross Sea) to quantify the role of individual variability and habitat structure in winter foraging behaviour. Most Weddell seals remained in relatively small areas close to the coast throughout the winter, but some dispersed widely. Individual utilisation distributions (UDi, a measure of the total area used by an individual seal) ranged from 125 to 20,825 km2. This variability was not due to size or sex but may be due to other intrinsic states for example reproductive condition or personality. The type of foraging (benthic vs. pelagic) varied from 56.6 ± 14.9% benthic dives in Prydz Bay through 42.1 ± 9.4% Terre Adélie to only 25.1 ± 8.7% in the Ross Sea reflecting regional hydrographic structure. The probability of benthic diving was less likely the deeper the ocean. Ocean topography was also influential at the population level; seals from Terre Adélie, with its relatively narrow continental shelf, had a core (50%) UD of only 200 km2, considerably smaller than the Ross Sea (1650 km2) and Prydz Bay (1700 km2). Sea ice concentration had little influence on the time the seals spent in shallow coastal waters, but in deeper offshore water they used areas of higher ice concentration. Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) in the Ross Sea encompass all the observed Weddell seal habitat, and future MPAs that include the Antarctic continental shelf are likely to effectively protect key Weddell seal habitat. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-23T13:56:11Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-b6e2de081f8442708aaabe8449cb2a6b |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2296-7745 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-23T13:56:11Z |
| publishDate | 2021-09-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Marine Science |
| spelling | doaj.art-b6e2de081f8442708aaabe8449cb2a6b2022-12-21T17:44:27ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Marine Science2296-77452021-09-01810.3389/fmars.2021.720335720335Regional Variation in Winter Foraging Strategies by Weddell Seals in Eastern Antarctica and the Ross SeaRob Harcourt0Mark A. Hindell1Clive R. McMahon2Clive R. McMahon3Clive R. McMahon4Kimberly T. Goetz5Kimberly T. Goetz6Jean-Benoit Charrassin7Karine Heerah8Rachel Holser9Ian D. Jonsen10Michelle R. Shero11Xavier Hoenner12Rose Foster13Baukje Lenting14Esther Tarszisz15Matthew Harry Pinkerton16Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, North Ryde, NSW, AustraliaInstitute for Antarctic and Marine Studies, University of Tasmania, Hobart, TAS, AustraliaDepartment of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, North Ryde, NSW, AustraliaInstitute for Antarctic and Marine Studies, University of Tasmania, Hobart, TAS, AustraliaIMOS Animal Tagging, Sydney Institute of Marine Science, Mosman, NSW, AustraliaNIWA, Wellington, New ZealandNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Marine Fisheries Service, Alaska Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Mammal Laboratory, Seattle, WA, United StatesSorbonne Université, CNRS/IRD/MNHN, LOCEAN-IPSL, Paris, FranceSorbonne Université, CNRS/IRD/MNHN, LOCEAN-IPSL, Paris, FranceInstitute of Marine Sciences, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, United StatesDepartment of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, North Ryde, NSW, AustraliaWoods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, MA, United StatesCSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere, CSIRO, Hobart, TAS, Australia0Te Kura Aronukurangi, Gateway Antarctica, University of Canterbury, Canterbury, New Zealand1Wellington Zoo, Wellington, New ZealandIMOS Animal Tagging, Sydney Institute of Marine Science, Mosman, NSW, AustraliaNIWA, Wellington, New ZealandThe relative importance of intrinsic and extrinsic determinants of animal foraging is often difficult to quantify. The most southerly breeding mammal, the Weddell seal, remains in the Antarctic pack-ice year-round. We compared Weddell seals tagged at three geographically and hydrographically distinct locations in East Antarctica (Prydz Bay, Terre Adélie, and the Ross Sea) to quantify the role of individual variability and habitat structure in winter foraging behaviour. Most Weddell seals remained in relatively small areas close to the coast throughout the winter, but some dispersed widely. Individual utilisation distributions (UDi, a measure of the total area used by an individual seal) ranged from 125 to 20,825 km2. This variability was not due to size or sex but may be due to other intrinsic states for example reproductive condition or personality. The type of foraging (benthic vs. pelagic) varied from 56.6 ± 14.9% benthic dives in Prydz Bay through 42.1 ± 9.4% Terre Adélie to only 25.1 ± 8.7% in the Ross Sea reflecting regional hydrographic structure. The probability of benthic diving was less likely the deeper the ocean. Ocean topography was also influential at the population level; seals from Terre Adélie, with its relatively narrow continental shelf, had a core (50%) UD of only 200 km2, considerably smaller than the Ross Sea (1650 km2) and Prydz Bay (1700 km2). Sea ice concentration had little influence on the time the seals spent in shallow coastal waters, but in deeper offshore water they used areas of higher ice concentration. Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) in the Ross Sea encompass all the observed Weddell seal habitat, and future MPAs that include the Antarctic continental shelf are likely to effectively protect key Weddell seal habitat.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2021.720335/fullmarine protected areasAntarcticamarine ecosystemsbathymetryecosystem monitoringWeddell seals |
| spellingShingle | Rob Harcourt Mark A. Hindell Clive R. McMahon Clive R. McMahon Clive R. McMahon Kimberly T. Goetz Kimberly T. Goetz Jean-Benoit Charrassin Karine Heerah Rachel Holser Ian D. Jonsen Michelle R. Shero Xavier Hoenner Rose Foster Baukje Lenting Esther Tarszisz Matthew Harry Pinkerton Regional Variation in Winter Foraging Strategies by Weddell Seals in Eastern Antarctica and the Ross Sea Frontiers in Marine Science marine protected areas Antarctica marine ecosystems bathymetry ecosystem monitoring Weddell seals |
| title | Regional Variation in Winter Foraging Strategies by Weddell Seals in Eastern Antarctica and the Ross Sea |
| title_full | Regional Variation in Winter Foraging Strategies by Weddell Seals in Eastern Antarctica and the Ross Sea |
| title_fullStr | Regional Variation in Winter Foraging Strategies by Weddell Seals in Eastern Antarctica and the Ross Sea |
| title_full_unstemmed | Regional Variation in Winter Foraging Strategies by Weddell Seals in Eastern Antarctica and the Ross Sea |
| title_short | Regional Variation in Winter Foraging Strategies by Weddell Seals in Eastern Antarctica and the Ross Sea |
| title_sort | regional variation in winter foraging strategies by weddell seals in eastern antarctica and the ross sea |
| topic | marine protected areas Antarctica marine ecosystems bathymetry ecosystem monitoring Weddell seals |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2021.720335/full |
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