A 14-year time series of marine megafauna bycatch in the Italian midwater pair trawl fishery

Bonanomi, Sara; Moro, Fabrizio; Colombelli, Alessandro; Pulcinella, Jacopo; Fortuna, Caterina Maria

doi:10.1038/s41597-022-01155-2

Cited by 7 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 30 publications

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“…A tendency of tracked juveniles to prefer the eastern side of the Adriatic, especially in its northern portion, has been noted (Casale et al, 2012a;Snape et al, 2020), which corresponds to a similar tendency for adult turtles having nested in Greece (Zbinden et al 2011;Schofield et al, 2013). Loggerheads are, however, known to frequent the waters of the western Adriatic and show a frequency of incidental captures (Pulcinella et al, 2019;Bonanomi et al, 2022) or of stranding events (Casale et al, 2010) in the area.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 81%

Satellite tracking identifies important foraging areas for loggerhead turtles frequenting the Adriatic Sea, Central Mediterranean

MENCACCI,

AIUDI,

ANGELINI

et al. 2023

Medit. Mar. Sci.

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The Adriatic Sea is one of the main foraging areas for marine turtles of the Mediterranean Sea, but the specific high-use sites are poorly known, due to the scarceness of satellite tracking data available for juvenile turtles frequenting the area. In the present study, we tracked 8 juvenile and adult loggerhead turtles (Caretta caretta) that were released along the north-western Adriatic coast after a rehabilitation period having been equipped with Argos-linked satellite transmitters. Tracked turtles displayed quite variable movement patterns, but mostly remained in the north-western Adriatic, especially during the summer months. A marked preference for specific coastal sites was revealed in many turtles, that actively moved towards these specific locations when released south of it or having spent the winter away. Pooling these data with those obtained in previous studies on a further 10 turtles, we highlighted the presence of two main high-use areas, north and south of the Po River delta, where future conservation actions may then be focused.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 81%

Satellite tracking identifies important foraging areas for loggerhead turtles frequenting the Adriatic Sea, Central Mediterranean

MENCACCI,

AIUDI,

ANGELINI

et al. 2023

Medit. Mar. Sci.

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“…In the northern Adriatic Sea, one of the main threats to sea turtles is the fishing activity, especially the intense bottom and midwater trawling that characterise this shallow area (Fortuna et al ., 2010; Lucchetti et al ., 2016; Pulcinella et al ., 2019; Bonanomi et al ., 2022). In this context, post-catch direct and potential mortality of trawling (midwater + bottom) in the northern Adriatic was estimated at 9.4% and 43.8%, respectively, that likely represented underestimates (Casale et al ., 2004).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, no trends were noticed during the same months of other years, which were instead characterized by a higher presence of sub-adults. It would be interesting to explore in greater detail such year-to-year variability once a more prolonged time series becomes available, a step that will allow us to better understand sea turtle strandings in relation to environmental parameters and fishing effort, an approach recently exploited in the Adriatic Sea for fishery by-caught individuals (Pulcinella et al ., 2019; Bonanomi et al ., 2022).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The area south of the Po River delta (Italy) is a hot spot for strandings of loggerhead sea turtles

Marisaldi,

Torresan,

Ferrari

2023

J. Mar. Biol. Ass.

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The northern Adriatic Sea is an important foraging ground for the loggerhead sea turtle Caretta caretta (Linnaeus, 1758) within the Mediterranean Sea. Here, stranding patterns of loggerhead sea turtles were examined over a four-year period (2019–2022) along a short (17 km) stretch of the Italian coast south of the Po River delta. A total of 355 records (alive, n = 24; dead, n = 331) were analysed, and the curved carapace lengths (CCL, notch to tip, cm) mainly reflected large juveniles and sub-adults (average CCL = 57.2 cm; 95% CI = 55.6–58.7). The month of July was identified as the critical month with the highest number of strandings, mirroring migratory processes towards this area during warmer months. The number of stranded turtles•km−1 as well as the absolute number of strandings along the short stretch of the coast might suggest this area as the most impacted in the Mediterranean Sea. This research emphasizes that human activities in the waters south of the Po River delta, particularly trawl fishing, are the primary cause of loggerhead sea turtle strandings and that tracking stranding patterns can offer valuable information about the geographic ranges, seasonal movements, and life cycles of this species.

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“…However, no trends were noticed during the same months of the previous year, which were instead characterized by a higher presence of sub-adults. It would be interesting to explore in greater detail such year-to-year variability once a more prolonged time series will become available, a step that will allow us to better understand sea turtles strandings in relation to parameters such as sea surface temperature, chlorophyll concentration and fishing effort, an approach recently exploited in the Adriatic Sea for fishery by-caught individuals (Pulcinella et al ., 2019; Bonanomi et al ., 2022).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Strandings of loggerhead sea turtles south of the Po River delta: insights from a highly impacted area

Marisaldi¹,

Torresan²,

Ferrari³

2022

Preprint

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The northern Adriatic Sea is an important foraging ground for the loggerhead sea turtle Caretta caretta within the Mediterranean Sea. Here, spatial-temporal patterns of loggerhead sea turtles strandings along a short portion (~18 km) of the coast south of the Po River delta (Italy) during a three-year period (2019-2021) were investigated. A total of 244 records (alive, n=7; dead, n=237) were analysed and the curved carapace lengths (CCL, notch to tip, cm) mainly reflected sub-adults (average CCL=55.2 cm; 95% CI= 53.3-57). The month of July was identified as the critical month with the highest number of strandings, mirroring migratory processes toward this area during warmer months. Interaction with the trawl fishery was hypothesized as the main cause of mortality and a small fraction of deaths (6%; n=16) could be linked to boat strikes and net entanglement. The number of stranded turtles*km-1 as well as the absolute number of strandings along the short portion of monitored coast confirmed this area as the most impacted in Italy and perhaps in the whole Mediterranean Sea. This study provides valuable information to improve conservation efforts for this species and highlight that, with all due caution, monitoring stranding events can offer useful insights into the geographic ranges, seasonal distribution, and life history of marine species of conservation interest such as the loggerhead sea turtle.

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A 14-year time series of marine megafauna bycatch in the Italian midwater pair trawl fishery

Cited by 7 publications

References 30 publications

Satellite tracking identifies important foraging areas for loggerhead turtles frequenting the Adriatic Sea, Central Mediterranean

Satellite tracking identifies important foraging areas for loggerhead turtles frequenting the Adriatic Sea, Central Mediterranean

The area south of the Po River delta (Italy) is a hot spot for strandings of loggerhead sea turtles

Strandings of loggerhead sea turtles south of the Po River delta: insights from a highly impacted area

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