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Lamont MM, Slone D, Reid JP, Butler SM, Alday J. Deep vs shallow: GPS tags reveal a dichotomy in movement patterns of loggerhead turtles foraging in a coastal bay. MOVEMENT ECOLOGY 2024; 12:40. [PMID: 38816732 PMCID: PMC11140867 DOI: 10.1186/s40462-024-00480-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2024] [Accepted: 05/21/2024] [Indexed: 06/01/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Individual variation in movement strategies of foraging loggerhead turtles have been documented on the scale of tens to hundreds of kilometers within single ocean basins. Use of different strategies among individuals may reflect variations in resources, predation pressure or competition. It is less common for individual turtles to use different foraging strategies on the scale of kilometers within a single coastal bay. We used GPS tags capable of back-filling fine-scale locations to document movement patterns of loggerhead turtles in a coastal bay in Northwest Florida, U.S.A. METHODS Iridium-linked GPS tags were deployed on loggerhead turtles at a neritic foraging site in Northwest Florida. After filtering telemetry data, point locations were transformed to movement lines and then merged with the original point file to define travel paths and assess travel speed. Home ranges were determined using kernel density function. Diurnal behavioral shifts were examined by examining turtle movements compared to solar time. RESULTS Of the 11 turtles tagged, three tracked turtles remained in deep (~ 6 m) water for almost the entire tracking period, while all other turtles undertook movements from deep water locations, located along edges and channels, to shallow (~ 1-2 m) shoals at regular intervals and primarily at night. Three individuals made short-term movements into the Gulf of Mexico when water temperatures dropped, and movement speeds in the Gulf were greater than those in the bay. Turtles exhibited a novel behavior we termed drifting. CONCLUSIONS This study highlighted the value provided to fine-scale movement studies for species such as sea turtles that surface infrequently by the ability of these GPS tags to store and re-upload data. Future use of these tags at other loggerhead foraging sites, and concurrent with diving and foraging data, would provide a powerful tool to better understand fine-scale movement patterns of sea turtles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Margaret M Lamont
- U.S. Geological Survey, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center, Gainesville, FL 32653, USA.
| | - Daniel Slone
- U.S. Geological Survey, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center, Gainesville, FL 32653, USA
| | - James P Reid
- U.S. Geological Survey, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center, Gainesville, FL 32653, USA
| | - Susan M Butler
- U.S. Geological Survey, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center, Gainesville, FL 32653, USA
| | - Joseph Alday
- U.S. Geological Survey, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center, Gainesville, FL 32653, USA
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Frankish CK, von Benda-Beckmann AM, Teilmann J, Tougaard J, Dietz R, Sveegaard S, Binnerts B, de Jong CAF, Nabe-Nielsen J. Ship noise causes tagged harbour porpoises to change direction or dive deeper. MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN 2023; 197:115755. [PMID: 37976591 DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2023.115755] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2023] [Revised: 10/31/2023] [Accepted: 11/02/2023] [Indexed: 11/19/2023]
Abstract
Shipping is the most pervasive source of marine noise pollution globally, yet its impact on sensitive fauna remains unclear. We tracked 10 harbour porpoises for 5-10 days to determine exposure and behavioural reactions to modelled broadband noise (10 Hz-20 kHz, VHF-weighted) from individual ships monitored by AIS. Porpoises spent a third of their time experiencing ship noise above ambient, to which they regularly reacted by moving away during daytime and diving deeper during night. However, even ships >2 km away (noise levels of 93 ± 14 dB re 1 μPa2) caused animals to react 5-9 % of the time (∼18.6 ships/day). Ships can thus influence the behaviour and habitat use of cetaceans over long distances, with worrying implications for fitness in coastal areas where anthropogenic noise from dense ship traffic repeatedly disrupt their natural behaviour.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caitlin K Frankish
- Marine Mammal Research Section, Department of Ecoscience, Aarhus University, Roskilde, Denmark.
| | - Alexander M von Benda-Beckmann
- Acoustics and Sonar Research Group, Netherlands Organization for Applied and Scientific Research (TNO), The Hague, the Netherlands
| | - Jonas Teilmann
- Marine Mammal Research Section, Department of Ecoscience, Aarhus University, Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Jakob Tougaard
- Marine Mammal Research Section, Department of Ecoscience, Aarhus University, Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Rune Dietz
- Marine Mammal Research Section, Department of Ecoscience, Aarhus University, Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Signe Sveegaard
- Marine Mammal Research Section, Department of Ecoscience, Aarhus University, Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Bas Binnerts
- Acoustics and Sonar Research Group, Netherlands Organization for Applied and Scientific Research (TNO), The Hague, the Netherlands
| | - Christ A F de Jong
- Acoustics and Sonar Research Group, Netherlands Organization for Applied and Scientific Research (TNO), The Hague, the Netherlands
| | - Jacob Nabe-Nielsen
- Marine Mammal Research Section, Department of Ecoscience, Aarhus University, Roskilde, Denmark
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Elmegaard SL, Teilmann J, Rojano-Doñate L, Brennecke D, Mikkelsen L, Balle JD, Gosewinkel U, Kyhn LA, Tønnesen P, Wahlberg M, Ruser A, Siebert U, Madsen PT. Wild harbour porpoises startle and flee at low received levels from acoustic harassment device. Sci Rep 2023; 13:16691. [PMID: 37794093 PMCID: PMC10550999 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-43453-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2022] [Accepted: 09/24/2023] [Indexed: 10/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Acoustic Harassment Devices (AHD) are widely used to deter marine mammals from aquaculture depredation, and from pile driving operations that may otherwise cause hearing damage. However, little is known about the behavioural and physiological effects of these devices. Here, we investigate the physiological and behavioural responses of harbour porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) to a commercial AHD in Danish waters. Six porpoises were tagged with suction-cup-attached DTAGs recording sound, 3D-movement, and GPS (n = 3) or electrocardiogram (n = 2). They were then exposed to AHDs for 15 min, with initial received levels (RL) ranging from 98 to 132 dB re 1 µPa (rms-fast, 125 ms) and initial exposure ranges of 0.9-7 km. All animals reacted by displaying a mixture of acoustic startle responses, fleeing, altered echolocation behaviour, and by demonstrating unusual tachycardia while diving. Moreover, during the 15-min exposures, half of the animals received cumulative sound doses close to published thresholds for temporary auditory threshold shifts. We conclude that AHD exposure at many km can evoke both startle, flight and cardiac responses which may impact blood-gas management, breath-hold capability, energy balance, stress level and risk of by-catch. We posit that current AHDs are too powerful for mitigation use to prevent hearing damage of porpoises from offshore construction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Siri L Elmegaard
- Zoophysiology, Dept. of Biology, Aarhus University, 8000, Aarhus, Denmark.
- Marine Mammal Research, Dept. of Ecoscience, Aarhus University, 4000, Roskilde, Denmark.
| | - Jonas Teilmann
- Marine Mammal Research, Dept. of Ecoscience, Aarhus University, 4000, Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Laia Rojano-Doñate
- Zoophysiology, Dept. of Biology, Aarhus University, 8000, Aarhus, Denmark
- Marine Mammal Research, Dept. of Ecoscience, Aarhus University, 4000, Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Dennis Brennecke
- Institute for Terrestrial and Aquatic Wildlife Research, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Foundation, 25761, Büsum, Germany
| | - Lonnie Mikkelsen
- Marine Mammal Research, Dept. of Ecoscience, Aarhus University, 4000, Roskilde, Denmark
- Norwegian Polar Institute, 9296, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Jeppe D Balle
- Marine Mammal Research, Dept. of Ecoscience, Aarhus University, 4000, Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Ulrich Gosewinkel
- Environmental Microbiology, Dept. of Environmental Science, Aarhus University, 4000, Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Line A Kyhn
- Marine Mammal Research, Dept. of Ecoscience, Aarhus University, 4000, Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Pernille Tønnesen
- Zoophysiology, Dept. of Biology, Aarhus University, 8000, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Magnus Wahlberg
- Marine Biological Research Centre, Dept. of Biology, University of Southern Denmark, 5300, Kerteminde, Denmark
| | - Andreas Ruser
- Institute for Terrestrial and Aquatic Wildlife Research, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Foundation, 25761, Büsum, Germany
| | - Ursula Siebert
- Institute for Terrestrial and Aquatic Wildlife Research, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Foundation, 25761, Büsum, Germany
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Lusseau D, Kindt-Larsen L, van Beest FM. Emergent interactions in the management of multiple threats to the conservation of harbour porpoises. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2023; 855:158936. [PMID: 36152860 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.158936] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2022] [Revised: 09/09/2022] [Accepted: 09/18/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Human activities at sea are intensifying and diversifying. This is leading to more complex interactions of anthropogenic impacts requiring adaptable management interventions to mitigate their cumulative effects on biodiversity conservation and restoration objectives. Bycatch remains the dominant conservation threat for coastal cetaceans. Additionally, the indirect impact of repeated exposure to disturbances, particularly acoustic disturbances, can affect cetacean population growth and therefore conservation objectives. Pingers are used to ensonify nets to provide an effective mitigation of bycatch risk. As those become more prevalent across fisheries at risk to catch for example harbour porpoises, pingers become contributors to the anthropogenic noise landscape which may affect the vital rates of this species as well. Currently, we do not know how to best balance pinger prevalence to minimise both bycatch rate and the population consequences of acoustic disturbance (PCoD). Here we use an agent-based model to determine how pinger prevalence in nets can be adjusted to minimise bycatch rate and noise disturbance propagating to affect population growth for harbour porpoises. We show that counter-intuitively bycatch rate can increase at lower pinger prevalence. When ecological conditions are such that PCOD can emerge, higher prevalence of pingers can lead to indirect effects on population growth. This would result from condition-mediated decreased reproductive potential. Displacing fishing effort, via time-area closure, can be an effective mitigation strategy in these circumstances. These findings have important implications for current management plans which, for practical consideration, may lead to lower overall pinger prevalence at sea. This study also shows that estimating the reproductive potential of the species should be incorporated in bycatch monitoring programmes. We now need to better understand how physiological condition affect reproductive decisions and behavioural responses to noise in cetaceans to better appraise and estimate the cumulative impacts of bycatch and its mitigations.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Lusseau
- National Institute for Aquatic Resources, Technical University of Denmark, 2800 Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark.
| | - Lotte Kindt-Larsen
- National Institute for Aquatic Resources, Technical University of Denmark, 2800 Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Floris M van Beest
- Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Frederiksborgvej 399, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
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van Beest FM, Dietz R, Galatius A, Kyhn LA, Sveegaard S, Teilmann J. Forecasting shifts in habitat suitability of three marine predators suggests a rapid decline in inter‐specific overlap under future climate change. Ecol Evol 2022; 12:e9083. [PMID: 35813921 PMCID: PMC9257519 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.9083] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2022] [Revised: 05/18/2022] [Accepted: 06/17/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Understanding how environmental and climate change can alter habitat overlap of marine predators has great value for the management and conservation of marine ecosystems. Here, we estimated spatiotemporal changes in habitat suitability and inter‐specific overlap among three marine predators: Baltic gray seals (Halichoerus grypus), harbor seals (Phoca vitulina), and harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) under contemporary and future conditions. Location data (>200 tagged individuals) were collected in the southwestern region of the Baltic Sea; one of the fastest‐warming semi‐enclosed seas in the world. We used the maximum entropy (MaxEnt) algorithm to estimate changes in total area size and overlap of species‐specific habitat suitability between 1997–2020 and 2091–2100. Predictor variables included environmental and climate‐sensitive oceanographic conditions in the area. Sea‐level rise, sea surface temperature, and salinity data were taken from representative concentration pathways [RCPs] scenarios 6.0 and 8.5 to forecast potential climate change effects. Model output suggested that habitat suitability of Baltic gray seals will decline over space and time, driven by changes in sea surface salinity and a loss of currently available haulout sites following sea‐level rise in the future. A similar, although weaker, effect was observed for harbor seals, while suitability of habitat for harbor porpoises was predicted to increase slightly over space and time. Inter‐specific overlap in highly suitable habitats was also predicted to increase slightly under RCP scenario 6.0 when compared to contemporary conditions, but to disappear under RCP scenario 8.5. Our study suggests that marine predators in the southwestern Baltic Sea may respond differently to future climatic conditions, leading to divergent shifts in habitat suitability that are likely to decrease inter‐specific overlap over time and space. We conclude that climate change can lead to a marked redistribution of area use by marine predators in the region, which may influence local food‐web dynamics and ecosystem functioning.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Rune Dietz
- Department of Ecoscience Aarhus University Roskilde Denmark
| | | | | | | | - Jonas Teilmann
- Department of Ecoscience Aarhus University Roskilde Denmark
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Sacchi G, Swallow B. Toward Efficient Bayesian Approaches to Inference in Hierarchical Hidden Markov Models for Inferring Animal Behavior. Front Ecol Evol 2021. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2021.623731] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The study of animal behavioral states inferred through hidden Markov models and similar state switching models has seen a significant increase in popularity in recent years. The ability to account for varying levels of behavioral scale has become possible through hierarchical hidden Markov models, but additional levels lead to higher complexity and increased correlation between model components. Maximum likelihood approaches to inference using the EM algorithm and direct optimization of likelihoods are more frequently used, with Bayesian approaches being less favored due to computational demands. Given these demands, it is vital that efficient estimation algorithms are developed when Bayesian methods are preferred. We study the use of various approaches to improve convergence times and mixing in Markov chain Monte Carlo methods applied to hierarchical hidden Markov models, including parallel tempering as an inference facilitation mechanism. The method shows promise for analysing complex stochastic models with high levels of correlation between components, but our results show that it requires careful tuning in order to maximize that potential.
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van Beest FM, Mews S, Elkenkamp S, Schuhmann P, Tsolak D, Wobbe T, Bartolino V, Bastardie F, Dietz R, von Dorrien C, Galatius A, Karlsson O, McConnell B, Nabe-Nielsen J, Olsen MT, Teilmann J, Langrock R. Classifying grey seal behaviour in relation to environmental variability and commercial fishing activity - a multivariate hidden Markov model. Sci Rep 2019; 9:5642. [PMID: 30948786 PMCID: PMC6449369 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-42109-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/10/2018] [Accepted: 03/25/2019] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Classifying movement behaviour of marine predators in relation to anthropogenic activity and environmental conditions is important to guide marine conservation. We studied the relationship between grey seal (Halichoerus grypus) behaviour and environmental variability in the southwestern Baltic Sea where seal-fishery conflicts are increasing. We used multiple environmental covariates and proximity to active fishing nets within a multivariate hidden Markov model (HMM) to quantify changes in movement behaviour of grey seals while at sea. Dive depth, dive duration, surface duration, horizontal displacement, and turning angle were used to identify travelling, resting and foraging states. The likelihood of seals foraging increased in deeper, colder, more saline waters, which are sites with increased primary productivity and possibly prey densities. Proximity to active fishing net also had a pronounced effect on state occupancy. The probability of seals foraging was highest <5 km from active fishing nets (51%) and decreased as distance to nets increased. However, seals used sites <5 km from active fishing nets only 3% of their time at sea highlighting an important temporal dimension in seal-fishery interactions. By coupling high-resolution oceanographic, fisheries, and grey seal movement data, our study provides a scientific basis for designing management strategies that satisfy ecological and socioeconomic demands on marine ecosystems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Floris M van Beest
- Marine Mammal Research, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Frederiksborgvej 399, DK-4000, Roskilde, Denmark.
| | - Sina Mews
- Department of Business Administration and Economics, Bielefeld University, Universitätsstraße 25, 33615, Bielefeld, Germany
| | - Svenja Elkenkamp
- Department of Business Administration and Economics, Bielefeld University, Universitätsstraße 25, 33615, Bielefeld, Germany
| | - Patrick Schuhmann
- Department of Business Administration and Economics, Bielefeld University, Universitätsstraße 25, 33615, Bielefeld, Germany
| | - Dorian Tsolak
- Department of Business Administration and Economics, Bielefeld University, Universitätsstraße 25, 33615, Bielefeld, Germany
| | - Till Wobbe
- Department of Business Administration and Economics, Bielefeld University, Universitätsstraße 25, 33615, Bielefeld, Germany
| | - Valerio Bartolino
- Department of Aquatic Resources, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Lysekil, SE-45321, Sweden
| | - Francois Bastardie
- National Institute for Aquatic Resources, Technical University of Denmark, Kemitorvet, Kgs. Lyngby, DK-2800, Denmark
| | - Rune Dietz
- Marine Mammal Research, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Frederiksborgvej 399, DK-4000, Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Christian von Dorrien
- Thünen Institute of Baltic Sea Fisheries, Alter Hafen Süd 2, D-18069, Rostock, Germany
| | - Anders Galatius
- Marine Mammal Research, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Frederiksborgvej 399, DK-4000, Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Olle Karlsson
- Department of Environmental Research and Monitoring, Swedish Museum of Natural History, Box 50007, SE-104 05, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Bernie McConnell
- Sea Mammal Research Unit, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, KY16 8LB, United Kingdom
| | - Jacob Nabe-Nielsen
- Marine Mammal Research, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Frederiksborgvej 399, DK-4000, Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Morten Tange Olsen
- Evolutionary Genomics Section, Natural History Museum of Denmark, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Øster Voldgade 5-7, DK-1350, Copenhagen K, Denmark
| | - Jonas Teilmann
- Marine Mammal Research, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Frederiksborgvej 399, DK-4000, Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Roland Langrock
- Department of Business Administration and Economics, Bielefeld University, Universitätsstraße 25, 33615, Bielefeld, Germany
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Rojas-Bracho L, Gulland FMD, Smith CR, Taylor B, Wells RS, Thomas PO, Bauer B, Heide-Jørgensen MP, Teilmann J, Dietz R, Balle JD, Jensen MV, Sinding MHS, Jaramillo-Legorreta A, Abel G, Read AJ, Westgate AJ, Colegrove K, Gomez F, Martz K, Rebolledo R, Ridgway S, Rowles T, van Elk CE, Boehm J, Cardenas-Hinojosa G, Constandse R, Nieto-Garcia E, Phillips W, Sabio D, Sanchez R, Sweeney J, Townsend F, Vivanco J, Vivanco JC, Walker S. A field effort to capture critically endangered vaquitas Phocoena sinus for protection from entanglement in illegal gillnets. ENDANGER SPECIES RES 2019. [DOI: 10.3354/esr00931] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
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