CESIMAR - CENPAT   25625
CENTRO PARA EL ESTUDIO DE SISTEMAS MARINOS
Unidad Ejecutora - UE
congresos y reuniones científicas
Título:
Ocean wanderers: satellite telemetry-derived movements and habitat use of Southern right whales (Eubalaena australis) in the western South Atlantic
Autor/es:
FERNÁNDEZ SANTIAGO JOSÉ; CLAPHAM, PHILLIP; GONZÁLEZ RAÚL; ROSENBAUM, HOWARD; MARCELA M. UHART; FERNÁNDEZ AJÓ, ALEJANDRO; COSCARELLA, MARIANO ALBERTO; HARRIS, GUILLERMO; SIRONI, MARIANO; ZERBINI, ALEXANDRE; ANDRIOLO, ARTUR; CRESPO, ENRIQUE; MÉNDEZ MARTÍN; SUCUNZA FEDERICO
Lugar:
HONOLULU, HAWAII
Reunión:
Simposio; 7TH INTERNATIONAL BIO-LOGGING SCIENCE SYMPOSIUM; 2021
Institución organizadora:
International Bio-Logging Society
Resumen:
Southern right whales (SRWs), once depleted to near extinction by whaling and now recovering and reoccupying historical habitats, are susceptible to environmental changes. Therefore, understanding shifts in their large-scale movements and foraging habitats is essential to enhance conservation and ensure their long-term survival. Between 2014 and 2019, location-only (n=33) and archival (n=6) Argos satellite transmitters were deployed on SRWs in the northern Patagonian gulfs off Argentina, the species? main calving grounds in the western South Atlantic. The goals of this study were to assess their movements, migratory routes and destinations, and their habitat use in the feeding grounds. Instruments were deployed on solitary individuals (n=23) and mothers with calves (n=13). Movement models were used to standardize tracks and assess areas of higher use throughout the migratory cycle. Average transmission duration was 115 days (range=18-237) for location-only tags and 95 days (range=71-126) for archival tags. Satellite tracking revealed movements of SRWs at various scales. Residency times and occupancy patterns of solitary individuals and mothers with calves in the breeding and calving grounds differ, with the mothers showing more restricted movements and longer residency. Some individual SRWs migrated close to shore along the coast of Argentina before moving offshore towards several feeding habitats, demonstrating the use of other coastal areas within the breeding grounds. Feeding destinations were identified in the Patagonian shelf from 35 to 52oS, the western South Atlantic basin, the Scotia Sea, and the northern Weddell Sea. The use of open-ocean mid-latitude oceanographic eddies, presumably for feeding, was also observed. This study provides unprecedented information on movements of SRWs, and demonstrates the species inhabits vast areas of the South Atlantic Ocean and visits multiple potential feeding grounds within each season. Long-term monitoring of this population shall provide an understanding on how SRWs respond and adapt to changes in their habitats.