Flipper strokes can predict energy expenditure and locomotion costs in free-ranging northern and Antarctic fur seals

Jeanniard‐du‐Dot, Tiphaine; Trites, Andrew W.; Arnould, John P. Y.; Speakman, John R.; Guinet, Christophe

doi:10.1038/srep33912

Cited by 30 publications

(29 citation statements)

References 65 publications

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“…Our results show that the average flipper stroke rates during different dive phases from this study were consistent with data from other free-ranging otariids (∼0.4-0.6 Hz; Fig. 5) (Insley et al, 2008;Jeanniard-du-Dot et al, 2016). Similar to some free-ranging phocids and cetaceans (Davis et al, 2001;Williams et al, 2000), California sea lions exhibited periods of gliding on the descent and ascent phases of deep dives, with maximum glides reaching over 160 s and covering 340 m vertical distance on the descent portions ( Figs 1A, 2B, 3C).…”

Section: Discussion Flipper Stroke Patternssupporting

confidence: 91%

“…The resulting dynamic acceleration was then analyzed using power spectral density analysis to identify the dominant frequency of a stroke for each individual animal (approximately 0.8-1.2 strokes s −1 ). A peak detection algorithm, similar to those in other studies (Jeanniard-du-Dot et al, 2016;Sato et al, 2011), was used to identify flipper strokes. A single flipper stroke was identified when there was a prominent acceleration peak (≥0.4-0.5 m s −2 ) in the x-axis ('forward surge') or z-axis ('heave surge') ( Fig.…”

Section: Data Processing and Statisticsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Flipper stroke rate and venous oxygen levels in free-ranging California sea lions

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McDonald

et al. 2017

Journal of Experimental Biology

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The depletion rate of the blood oxygen store, development of hypoxemia and dive capacity are dependent on the distribution and rate of blood oxygen delivery to tissues while diving. Although blood oxygen extraction by working muscle would increase the blood oxygen depletion rate in a swimming animal, there is little information on the relationship between muscle workload and blood oxygen depletion during dives. Therefore, we examined flipper stroke rate, a proxy of muscle workload, and posterior vena cava oxygen profiles in four adult female California sea lions (Zalophus californianus) during foraging trips at sea. Flipper stroke rate analysis revealed that sea lions minimized muscle metabolism with a stroke-glide strategy when diving, and exhibited prolonged glides during the descent of deeper dives (>100 m). During the descent phase of these deep dives, 55± 21% of descent was spent gliding, with the longest glides lasting over 160 s and covering a vertical distance of 340 m. Animals also consistently glided to the surface from 15 to 25 m depth during these deeper dives. Venous hemoglobin saturation (S O2 ) profiles were highly variable throughout dives, with values occasionally increasing during shallow dives. The relationship between S O2 and flipper stroke rate was weak during deeper dives, while this relationship was stronger during shallow dives. We conclude that (1) the depletion of oxygen in the posterior vena cava in deep-diving sea lions is not dependent on stroke effort, and (2) stroke-glide patterns during dives contribute to a reduction of muscle metabolic rate.

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Section: Discussion Flipper Stroke Patternssupporting

confidence: 91%

Section: Data Processing and Statisticsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Flipper stroke rate and venous oxygen levels in free-ranging California sea lions

Tift

Hückstädt

McDonald

et al. 2017

Journal of Experimental Biology

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“…Pre‐transmission data abstraction involved a series of tailored processing algorithms, developed specifically for the low power computing environment of the satellite data relay tag from established techniques typically used (and validated) for the processing of archived accelerometer data from pinnipeds (e.g. Gallon et al., ; Guinet et al., ; Jeanniard‐du‐Dot, Trites, Arnould, Speakman, & Guinet, ; Jouma'a et al., ; Richard et al., ; Viviant et al., ; Volpov, Hoskins, et al., ). In some instances, this required considerable modification of the original established processing algorithms, alongside the use of set thresholds.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Processing of acceleration and dive data on‐board satellite relay tags to investigate diving and foraging behaviour in free‐ranging marine predators

et al. 2017

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Biologging technologies are changing the way in which the marine environment is observed and monitored. However, because device retrieval is typically required to access the high‐resolution data they collect, their use is generally restricted to those animals that predictably return to land. Data abstraction and transmission techniques aim to address this, although currently these are limited in scope and do not incorporate, for example, acceleration measurements which can quantify animal behaviours and movement patterns over fine‐scales.In this study, we present a new method for the collection, abstraction and transmission of accelerometer data from free‐ranging marine predators via the Argos satellite system. We test run the technique on 20 juvenile southern elephant seals Mirounga leonina from the Kerguelen Islands during their first months at sea following weaning. Using retrieved archival data from nine individuals that returned to the colony, we compare and validate abstracted transmissions against outputs from established accelerometer processing procedures.Abstracted transmissions included estimates, across five segments of a dive profile, of time spent in prey catch attempt (PrCA) behaviours, swimming effort and pitch. These were then summarised and compared to archival outputs across three dive phases: descent, bottom and ascent. Correlations between the two datasets were variable but generally good (dependent on dive phase, marginal R 2 values of between .45 and .6 to >.9) and consistent between individuals. Transmitted estimates of PrCA behaviours and swimming effort were positively biased to those from archival processing.Data from this study represent some of the first remotely transmitted quantifications from accelerometers. The methods presented and analysed can be used to provide novel insight towards the behaviours and movements of free‐ranging marine predators, such as juvenile southern elephant seals, from whom logger retrieval is challenging. Future applications could however benefit from some adaption, particularly to reduce positive bias in transmitted PrCA behaviours and swimming effort, for which this study provides useful insight.

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“…Habitats visited by the seals in this study were often defined as ‘pavement’ or ‘aggregate reef’. ‘Pavement is flat, low-relief, solid carbonate rock covered by macroalgae, hard coral, zoanthids and other sessile invertebrates that are dense enough to begin to obscure the underlying surface’ [31]. This definition describes a substrate that is likely to be too dense for prey to burrow into, and lacks relief such as large coral heads.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Integrating multiple technologies to understand the foraging behaviour of Hawaiian monk seals

et al. 2017

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The objective of this research was to investigate and describe the foraging behaviour of monk seals in the main Hawaiian Islands. Specifically, our goal was to identify a metric to classify foraging behaviour from telemetry instruments. We deployed accelerometers, seal-mounted cameras and GPS tags on six monk seals during 2012–2014 on the islands of Molokai, Kauai and Oahu. We used pitch, calculated from the accelerometer, to identify search events and thus classify foraging dives. A search event and consequent ‘foraging dive’ occurred when the pitch was greater than or equal to 70° at a depth less than or equal to −3 m. By integrating data from the accelerometers with video and GPS, we were able to ground-truth this classification method and identify environmental variables associated with each foraging dive. We used Bayesian logistic regression to identify the variables that influenced search events. Dive depth, body motion (mean overall dynamic body acceleration during the dive) and proximity to the sea floor were the best predictors of search events for these seals. Search events typically occurred on long, deep dives, with more time spent at the bottom (more than 50% bottom time). We can now identify where monk seals are foraging in the main Hawaiian Islands (MHI) and what covariates influence foraging behaviour in this region. This increased understanding will inform management strategies and supplement outreach and recovery efforts.

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Flipper strokes can predict energy expenditure and locomotion costs in free-ranging northern and Antarctic fur seals

Cited by 30 publications

References 65 publications

Flipper stroke rate and venous oxygen levels in free-ranging California sea lions

Flipper stroke rate and venous oxygen levels in free-ranging California sea lions

Processing of acceleration and dive data on‐board satellite relay tags to investigate diving and foraging behaviour in free‐ranging marine predators

Integrating multiple technologies to understand the foraging behaviour of Hawaiian monk seals

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