Long-Distance Animal Migrations in the Oceanic Environment: Orientation and Navigation Correlates

Luschi, Paolo

doi:10.1155/2013/631839

Cited by 40 publications

(31 citation statements)

References 215 publications

(415 reference statements)

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The use of state-of-the-art numerical simulation-ocean circulation models has shed light on previous knowledge of at-sea orientation strategies, suggesting that even the 'general' distribution of turtles might not be well predicted by ocean currents alone [46]. As a first approximation, dispersal studies can provide us with useful scenarios of at-sea behaviour for young oceanic sea turtles [10,60]. However, these predictions will not depict exactly how an animal travels at sea [10].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Active dispersal in loggerhead sea turtles ( Caretta caretta ) during the ‘lost years’

et al. 2016

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Highly migratory marine species can travel long distances and across entire ocean basins to reach foraging and breeding grounds, yet gaps persist in our knowledge of oceanic dispersal and habitat use. This is especially true for sea turtles, whose complex life history and lengthy pelagic stage present unique conservation challenges. Few studies have explored how these young at-sea turtles navigate their environment, but advancements in satellite technology and numerical models have shown that active and passive movements are used in relation to open ocean features. Here, we provide the first study, to the best of our knowledge, to simultaneously combine a high-resolution physical forcing ocean circulation model with long-term multi-year tracking data of young, trans-oceanic North Pacific loggerhead sea turtles during their 'lost years' at sea. From 2010 to 2014, we compare simulated trajectories of passive transport with empirical data of 1-3 year old turtles released off Japan (29.7-37.5 straight carapace length cm). After several years, the at-sea distribution of simulated current-driven trajectories significantly differed from that of the observed turtle tracks. These results underscore current theories on active dispersal by young oceanic-stage sea turtles and give further weight to hypotheses of juvenile foraging strategies for this species. Such information can also provide critical geographical information for spatially explicit conservation approaches to this endangered population.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Active dispersal in loggerhead sea turtles ( Caretta caretta ) during the ‘lost years’

et al. 2016

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…In this expository study, we focus neither on the full journey nor the precise navigating mechanism, rather we test our methodology and examine the ease of finding the island inside the final few hundred kilometres. For further theories on marine turtle navigation, see [2,37].…”

Section: Natal Homing To Ascension Island By Green Turtlesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Navigating the flow: individual and continuum models for homing in flowing environments

Painter

Hillen

2015

J. R. Soc. Interface.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Navigation for aquatic and airborne species often takes place in the face of complicated flows, from persistent currents to highly unpredictable storms. Hydrodynamic models are capable of simulating flow dynamics and provide the impetus for much individual-based modelling, in which particlesized individuals are immersed into a flowing medium. These models yield insights on the impact of currents on population distributions from fish eggs to large organisms, yet their computational demands and intractability reduce their capacity to generate the broader, less parameter-specific, insights allowed by traditional continuous approaches. In this paper, we formulate an individual-based model for navigation within a flowing field and apply scaling to derive its corresponding macroscopic and continuous model. We apply it to various movement classes, from drifters that simply go with the flow to navigators that respond to environmental orienteering cues. The utility of the model is demonstrated via its application to 'homing' problems and, in particular, the navigation of the marine green turtle Chelonia mydas to Ascension Island.

show abstract

“…Sea turtles' spatial ecology benefits the recent progress in biotelemetry and more particularly in satellite tracking. There is now a better understanding on the spatial ecology of sea turtles in the major oceans (Hays, 2008) and its long distances migrations related to oceanic environment (Luschi, 2013). In the western Indian Ocean, recent results using genetics (Bourjea, Lapègue, et al, 2007;Bourjea, Mortimer, et al, 2015), satellite tracking (Dalleau, 2013), and spatial statistics (Dalleau et al, 2012) have provided a better understanding of the regional dynamics of green turtle in the region.…”

Section: Outlook On Model Improvementsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Modeling the emergence of migratory corridors and foraging hot spots of the green sea turtle

Dalleau

Kramer‐Schadt

Gangat³

et al. 2019

Ecology and Evolution

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Environmental factors shape the spatial distribution and dynamics of populations. Understanding how these factors interact with movement behavior is critical for efficient conservation, in particular for migratory species. Adult female green sea turtles, Chelonia mydas, migrate between foraging and nesting sites that are generally separated by thousands of kilometers. As an emblematic endangered species, green turtles have been intensively studied, with a focus on nesting, migration, and foraging. Nevertheless, few attempts integrated these behaviors and their trade‐offs by considering the spatial configurations of foraging and nesting grounds as well as environmental heterogeneity like oceanic currents and food distribution. We developed an individual‐based model to investigate the impact of local environmental conditions on emerging migratory corridors and reproductive output and to thereby identify conservation priority sites. The model integrates movement, nesting, and foraging behavior. Despite being largely conceptual, the model captured realistic movement patterns which confirm field studies. The spatial distribution of migratory corridors and foraging hot spots was mostly constrained by features of the regional landscape, such as nesting site locations, distribution of feeding patches, and oceanic currents. These constraints also explained the mixing patterns in regional forager communities. By implementing alternative decision strategies of the turtles, we found that foraging site fidelity and nesting investment, two characteristics of green turtles' biology, are favorable strategies under unpredictable environmental conditions affecting their habitats. Based on our results, we propose specific guidelines for the regional conservation of green turtles as well as future research suggestions advancing spatial ecology of sea turtles. Being implemented in an easy to learn open‐source software, our model can coevolve with the collection and analysis of new data on energy budget and movement into a generic tool for sea turtle research and conservation. Our modeling approach could also be useful for supporting the conservation of other migratory marine animals.

show abstract

Long-Distance Animal Migrations in the Oceanic Environment: Orientation and Navigation Correlates

Cited by 40 publications

References 215 publications

Active dispersal in loggerhead sea turtles ( Caretta caretta ) during the ‘lost years’

Active dispersal in loggerhead sea turtles ( Caretta caretta ) during the ‘lost years’

Navigating the flow: individual and continuum models for homing in flowing environments

Modeling the emergence of migratory corridors and foraging hot spots of the green sea turtle

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About