Movements and site fidelity of harbour seals (Phoca vitulina) in Kattegat, Denmark, with implications for the epidemiology of the phocine distemper virus

Dietz, Runé; Teilmann, Jonas; Andersen, Signe May; Rigét, Frank; Olsen, Morten Tange

doi:10.1093/icesjms/fss144

Cited by 41 publications

(51 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…between Galapagos fur seals Arctocephalus galapagoensis and sea lions Zalophus wollebaeki (Villegas-Amtmann et al 2013), grey seals and harbour seals (Svensson 2012) and, within species, between juveniles and adults (Crawford et al 2012, Breed et al 2013) and mature males and females (Andersen et al 2013). However, it is less commonly reported among adults of the same sex within species (Kernaléguen et al 2015), as here.…”

Section: Individual Variation In Foraging and Diving Behavioursupporting

confidence: 52%

“…Overall, the data suggest that Caspian seals are likely to have little population structure since they disperse throughout the whole Caspian from the Komsomolets Bay moulting site, and during the winter animals ranged through the whole breeding distribution in the ice pack identified from aerial surveys (Dmitrieva 2013, Dmitrieva et al 2015. Such long range dispersal, high mobility, and aggregated breeding is comparable with other ice-breeding species with weak population structure, such as ringed seals in the Arctic, where the annual life history is governed by seasonal and spatial separation of breeding substrate and food resources (MartinezBakker et al 2013); hooded seals in the North Atlantic where migration patterns reflect favourable foraging conditions (Coltman et al 2007, Andersen et al 2013; and in Weddell seals (Chambert et al 2015).…”

Section: Seasonal Movements Of Caspian Sealsmentioning

confidence: 94%

“…Similarly, they may use movement to partition themselves spatially or temporally from competitors. One of the most effective ways to study movement patterns of marine mammals is through satellite telemetry, which has been used to address questions relating to resource selection, foraging strategy, dispersal, migration, home range, survival, population abundance and distribution (Folkow et al 2004, Lake et al 2006, Freitas et al 2008a, Dietz et al 2013.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Temporal, vertical and horizontal prey distribution, and meteorological and oceanographic conditions have been shown to determine movement and foraging behaviour of different pinniped species, e.g. wind speed and light for northern fur seals Callorhinus ursinus (Sterling et al 2014); water temperature for southern elephant seals Mirounga leonina (Bestley et al 2013), temperature, bathymetry and chlorophyll for hooded seals Cystophora cristata (Andersen et al 2013), and ice coverage for ringed seals Pusa hispida (Freitas et al 2008b). Movements of central place foragers (species that make regular short-duration foraging trips to defined feeding areas) can be limited by proximity to haul-out sites, which they use for resting or feeding pups, as seen in harbour seals Phoca vitulina (Thompson & Miller 1990), grey seals Halichoerus grypus (Harvey et al 2012) and otariids during breeding seasons (Thompson et al 2003).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Individual variation in seasonal movements and foraging strategies of a land-locked, ice-breeding pinniped

Dmitrieva¹,

Jüssi²,

Jüssi³

et al. 2016

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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Marine mammal satellite telemetry studies can provide important tests of movement and foraging theory. Here we present the first satellite tracking study of Caspian seals Pusa caspica, an endangered, ice-breeding phocid seal, endemic to the Caspian Sea. The Caspian Sea is one of the most variable habitats inhabited by any pinniped species, and lacks competing large piscivores. Under such conditions foraging theory predicts that individual variation in foraging strategy may develop to reduce intra-species competition. We deployed 75 Argos satellite tags from 2009 to 2012 on adult seals of both sexes, and used state-space modelling to describe movement, and behavioural states. During winter in all years most individuals were mobile within the icepack, making repeated trips into open water outside the ice field, with only brief stationary periods that may have been related to breeding activity. During summer 2011, 60% of tagged animals migrated into the mid and southern Caspian, while the remainder spent the ice-free season in the north. Summer foraging locations were not restricted by proximity to haul-out sites, with animals spending more than 6 months at sea. Maximum dive depths exceeded 200 m, and maximum duration was greater than 20 min, but 80% of dives were shallower than 15 m and shorter than 5 min. Hierarchical cluster analysis identified 3 distinct groups of summer dive behaviour, comprising shallow, intermediate and deep divers, which were also spatially exclusive, suggesting potential niche partitioning and individual specialisation on prey or habitat types. The results can contribute to assessment of impacts from anthropogenic activities and to designation of protected areas encompassing critical habitats.

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Section: Individual Variation In Foraging and Diving Behavioursupporting

confidence: 52%

Section: Seasonal Movements Of Caspian Sealsmentioning

confidence: 94%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Individual variation in seasonal movements and foraging strategies of a land-locked, ice-breeding pinniped

Dmitrieva¹,

Jüssi²,

Jüssi³

et al. 2016

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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“…Site fidelity was also observed for 27 animals tagged at the Anholt haul‐out site in central Kattegat (Dietz et al . ), and harbour seals in the region appear to have different contaminant loads (Dietz et al . ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Integrating genetic data and population viability analyses for the identification of harbour seal (Phoca vitulina) populations and management units

et al. 2014

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Identification of populations and management units is an essential step in the study of natural systems. Still, there is limited consensus regarding how to define populations and management units, and whether genetic methods allow for inference at the relevant spatial and temporal scale. Here, we present a novel approach, integrating genetic, life history and demographic data to identify populations and management units in southern Scandinavian harbour seals. First, 15 microsatellite markers and model- and distance-based genetic clustering methods were used to determine the population genetic structure in harbour seals. Second, we used harbour seal demographic and life history data to conduct population viability analyses (PVAs) in the vortex simulation model in order to determine whether the inferred genetic units could be classified as management units according to Lowe and Allendorf's (Molecular Ecology, 19, 2010, 3038) 'population viability criterion' for demographic independence. The genetic analyses revealed fine-scale population structuring in southern Scandinavian harbour seals and pointed to the existence of several genetic units. The PVAs indicated that the census population size of each of these genetic units was sufficiently large for long-term population viability, and hence that the units could be classified as demographically independent management units. Our study suggests that population genetic inference can offer the same degree of temporal and spatial resolution as 'nongenetic' methods and that the combined use of genetic data and PVAs constitutes a promising approach for delineating populations and management units.

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Disturbance‐induced responses of VHF and satellite tagged harbour seals

Andersen

Teilmann

Dietz

et al. 2013

Aquatic Conservation

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The response of individual harbour seals (Phoca vitulina) to controlled and sporadic disturbances when hauled out in the Anholt seal reserve, Denmark, was studied. Sporadic disturbances from pedestrians, boats, low‐flying aeroplanes and grey seals (Halichoerus grypus) were observed in or near the reserve. VHF and satellite transmitters were attached to eight harbour seals to determine post‐disturbance and undisturbed behaviour during the pre‐breeding period (25 April to 21 May 2008).Both disturbed and undisturbed seals mostly returned to the haul‐out site from dusk and throughout the night. Only pedestrian disturbances caused significantly longer‐lasting trips at sea than undisturbed trips, while the other types of disturbance did not affect trip duration. The general maximum extent and area‐use of disturbed and undisturbed trips were comparable and almost all at‐sea locations were within 40 km from the haul‐out site. The maximum extent of post‐disturbance trips, however, varied among individuals and disturbance types, and was strongly correlated with the duration of trips.Disturbed and undisturbed seals used the same areas, suggesting that these areas represent normal foraging areas. This may indicate that harbour seals reduce the cost of being disturbed by foraging after disturbances instead of waiting close to the haul‐out site to resume hauling out.During the pre‐breeding period the seals showed a very high site fidelity by consistently returning to the same haul‐out site, even when subjected to repeated disturbances. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

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Movements and site fidelity of harbour seals (Phoca vitulina) in Kattegat, Denmark, with implications for the epidemiology of the phocine distemper virus

Cited by 41 publications

References 25 publications

Individual variation in seasonal movements and foraging strategies of a land-locked, ice-breeding pinniped

Individual variation in seasonal movements and foraging strategies of a land-locked, ice-breeding pinniped

Integrating genetic data and population viability analyses for the identification of harbour seal (Phoca vitulina) populations and management units

Disturbance‐induced responses of VHF and satellite tagged harbour seals

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