Winter habitat use of harbour seals (&lt;i&gt;Phoca vitulina&lt;/i&gt;) fitted with Fastloc™GPS/GSM tags in two tidal bays in France

Vincent, Cécile; McConnell, Bernie; Delayat, Stéphanie; Elder, J. Tait; Gautier, Gérard; Ridoux, Vincent

doi:10.7557/3.2691

Cited by 17 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 42 publications

(79 reference statements)

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“…The maximum aquatic periods in Svalbard for each month (13–19 days September to May, 7 days in June) were much longer than what has been found for other populations [7], [14], [16], though the average aquatic period for Svalbard harbour seals was similar to the average for more southern populations [16], [20], [64].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 50%

Haul-Out Behaviour of the World's Northernmost Population of Harbour Seals (Phoca vitulina) throughout the Year

et al. 2014

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The harbour seal population in Svalbard occurs at the northernmost limit of the species' range. It experiences environmental extremes far beyond the norm for this species, including an extended period of polar night and extensive sea ice cover. In 2009 and 2010, 60 harbour seals (30 pups + 30 immature/mature seals) from this population were equipped with Satellite-Relay Data Loggers (SRDLs) to study their haul-out behaviour, with a special focus on the winter period. Using a combination of Generalized Additive Mixed Models and Cox Proportional Hazard models, the influences of sex, maturity, temporal, spatial and environmental factors on haul-out behaviour were explored. All of the seals continued to haul out even through the coldest periods during the polar night, though clear seasonality in the time spent hauled out daily was displayed by both immature and mature seals. Time spent hauled out daily decreased from ∼5.2 hrs in September to ∼1.2 hrs in February in these age groups, while pups displayed less seasonality (∼2.4 hrs/day throughout most of the year). The average at-sea period also exhibited seasonality, increasing to a maximum of ∼1.6 days in February (monthly maxima for individual animals ranged from 7 to 19 days). The seals showed a strong preference to haul out at low tide when hauling out on land but not when using sea ice as a haul-out platform. A diel rhythm in haul-out behaviour was present during the months with day–night cycling and midnight sun but not during the polar night. Haul-out behaviour was impacted to a greater extent by air pressure, through its effect on wind speed, than by absolute temperature values. The extreme environment in Svalbard likely causes some physiological challenges that might impact survival rates negatively, particularly among pups. Climate warming is likely to have positive effects on Svalbard's harbour seal population.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 50%

Haul-Out Behaviour of the World's Northernmost Population of Harbour Seals (Phoca vitulina) throughout the Year

et al. 2014

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“…Our study provides a comprehensive assessment of the accuracy of Fastloc-GPS locations and hence will help inform efforts to extract the most biological information from the extensive Fastloc-GPS tracking data sets that are now emerging for a diverse range of taxa. These taxa include pinnipeds (Costa et al 2010;Vincent et al 2010 (Bost et al 2011). To investigate Fastloc-GPS accuracy, previous trials have been performed before by the developer of this technology (Wildtrack Telemetry Systems Ltd.) using fixed location trials (Bryant 2007).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The accuracy of Fastloc‐GPS locations and implications for animal tracking

2014

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Summary1. Over recent years, a major breakthrough in marine animal tracking has occurred with the advent of Fastloc-GPS that provides highly accurate location data even for animals that only surface briefly such as sea turtles, marine mammals and penguins. 2. We assessed the accuracy of Fastloc-GPS locations using fixed trials of tags in which >45 000 locations were obtained. Procedures for determining the speed of travel and heading were developed by simulating tracks and then adding Fastloc-GPS location errors. The levels of detail achievable for speed and heading estimates were illustrated by using empirical Fastloc-GPS data for a green turtle (Chelonia mydas, Linnaeus, 1758) travelling over 3000 km across the Indian Ocean. 3. The accuracy of Fastloc-GPS locations varied as a function of the number of GPS satellites used in the location calculation. For example, when Fastloc-GPS locations were calculated using 4 GPS satellites, 50% of locations were within 36 m and 95% within 724 m of the true position. These values improved to 18 and 70 m, respectively, when 6 satellites were used. Simulations indicated that for animals travelling around 2Á5 km h À1 (e.g. turtles, penguins and seals) and depending on the number of satellites used in the location calculation, robust speed and heading estimates would usually be obtained for locations only 1-6 h apart. 4. Fastloc-GPS accuracy is several orders of magnitude better that conventional Argos tracking or light-based geolocation and consequently will allow new insights into small-scale movement patterns of marine animals.

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“…over 2 yr) and average durations of data streams (200 d), which spanned from the immediate post-moulting period to late spring of the following year, taking them through most of the ice-covered period in the Svalbard region. Previous studies on harbour seals movement patterns indicate that this species is relatively sedentary through out the year, although seasonal shifts between favoured sites is common and in some areas the seals make offshore trips in the vicinity of the main haul-out sites to distances between 20 and 30 km (Thompson & Miller 1990, Thompson et al 1991, Thompson et al 1998b, Vincent et al 2010, Sharples et al 2012). However, longdistance movements have also been recorded in some areas, linked mainly to seasonal migrations to avoid ice or dispersal by immature animals (Lesage et al 2004, Peterson et al 2012, Sharples et al 2012 Table 5.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Harbour seal Phoca vitulina movement patterns in the high-Arctic archipelago of Svalbard, Norway

Blanchet¹,

Lydersen²,

Ims³

et al. 2014

Aquat. Biol.

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Harbour seals Phoca vitulina are mainly considered a temperate species, but the world's northernmost population resides year-round in the high-Arctic archipelago of Svalbard. In this study we document post-moulting at-sea movements of 30 individuals from this population using satellite relay data loggers deployed in the autumns of 2009 and 2010. All of the seals showed a strong preference for the west side of the archipelago, staying mainly in coastal areas (< 50 km over the continental shelf), but seldom entering the fjord systems. Distance swam per day, individual home range size, and trip duration increased throughout the winter to a peak that was reached when drifting sea ice in the region was at a maximum. No effect of age was observed, but sex differences were significant; males occupied larger areas than females. Habitat selection was quantified by modelling time spent in area (TSA) as a function of environmental parameters using Cox proportional hazard models (CPH). The harbour seals avoided heavy ice concentrations (> 50%) but did occupy areas with substantial amounts of drifting ice (5 to 25%). Shallow water (<100 m) and steep bathymetric slopes were preferred to deep water or flat-bottom areas. Harbour seal distribution in Svalbard is largely restricted to coastal areas that are heavily influenced by Atlantic water brought northward in the West Spitsbergen Current; both the temperature and influx of this water type are predicted to increase in the future. It is thus likely that environmental conditions in Svalbard in the future will become more favourable for harbour seals.

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Winter habitat use of harbour seals (<i>Phoca vitulina</i>) fitted with Fastloc™GPS/GSM tags in two tidal bays in France

Cited by 17 publications

References 42 publications

Haul-Out Behaviour of the World's Northernmost Population of Harbour Seals (Phoca vitulina) throughout the Year

Haul-Out Behaviour of the World's Northernmost Population of Harbour Seals (Phoca vitulina) throughout the Year

The accuracy of Fastloc‐GPS locations and implications for animal tracking

Harbour seal Phoca vitulina movement patterns in the high-Arctic archipelago of Svalbard, Norway

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