Spatio-temporal overlap between the at-sea distribution of Southern Giant Petrels and fisheries at the Patagonian Shelf

COPELLO, S.; QUINTANA, F.

POLAR BIOLOGY

SPRINGER

Año: 2009 vol. 32 p. 1211 - 1220

0722-4060

The interactions between seabirds and Wsheriespose signiWcant threats for the seabird species such as incidentalcapture. In contrast, several species of seabirds meetpart of their energetic requirements through the use of Wsheriesdiscards. Knowledge about the relationship betweenat-sea distribution of Procellariiformes and Wsheries is akey tool in marine ecosystem management. We analysedthe spatio-temporal relationship between the areas used by16 satellite-tracked breeding adults of the Southern GiantPetrel and Wsheries distribution and catch at the PatagonianShelf. We also determined the time spent by adults indiVerent marine jurisdictions. Results indicated a markedspatio-temporal association between birds and Wsheries,mainly trawlers. The Southern Giant Petrels concentratedtheir foraging eVort over Argentinean waters. The use ofan abundant and predictable food source provided by theWsheries discards may be one of the factors aVecting thedynamics of the Southern Giant Petrel populations inPatagonia, Argentina.