Movement of southern elephant seals (Mirounga leonina L.) from Elephant Is. South Shetlands, Antarctica

Muelbert, Mônica M. C.; Robaldo, Ricardo Berteaux; Martínes, Pablo E.; Colares, Elton Pinto; Bianchini, Adalto; Setzer, Alberto

doi:10.1590/s1516-89132004000300017

Cited by 9 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 18 publications

(19 reference statements)

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“…The movements of AM8 and AM13 may not be unique, as similar results have been found for animals instrumented at Elephant Island in 1999 (Muelbert et al 2004). Both findings coincide with the area just to the north of the Antarctic Peninsula, where the Antarctic Circumpolar Current is directed through the Drake Passage into the Scotia Sea (Holm-Hansen et al 2004).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 76%

Adult male southern elephant seals from King George Island utilize the Weddell Sea

et al. 2008

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 76%

Adult male southern elephant seals from King George Island utilize the Weddell Sea

et al. 2008

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“…This provides strong evidence that some individuals breeding on South Georgia migrate to KGI for moulting. There is also evidence for move-ments of elephant seals between KGI and the adjacent Elephant Island (McConnell et al 1992, Bornemann et al 2000, Muelbert et al 2004. Consistently, our study showed that 79% of individuals sampled in KGI had mtDNA haplotypes that have been detected earlier in other South Atlantic colonies on South Georgia, the Falklands and Elephant Island.…”

Section: Mtdna Diversity Compared With Other Coloniessupporting

confidence: 87%

Genetic diversity in a moulting colony of southern elephant seals in comparison with breeding colonies

Bogdanowicz¹,

Pilot²,

Gajewska³

et al. 2013

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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Southern elephant seals Mirounga leonina migrate seasonally between pelagic foraging areas in the Southern Ocean and breeding and moulting sites on subantarctic islands. Here we characterized genetic diversity of the elephant seal moulting colony from King George Island (KGI), South Shetlands Archipelago, in comparison with breeding colonies described in earlier studies. Although KGI serves as a breeding site, the numbers of elephant seals are up to 3 times higher during the moulting season, suggesting post-breeding immigration from other sites, or that large numbers of individuals skip the breeding season every year. High haplotype diversity and a high percentage of shared haplotypes is consistent with the hypothesis of immigration from other South Atlantic colonies, which is also supported by satellite tracking data from earlier studies.Estimates of effective population size at both mtDNA and microsatellite loci were unexpectedly high compared with the census size of the KGI colony, suggesting that they were elevated due to the presence of immigrants. However, we detected few immigrants and no genetic structure in the KGI colony, which could result from the genetic similarity between KGI and other breeding colonies from the South Atlantic, but could also be an effect of an insufficient sampling scheme. These results show the need for genetic monitoring of southern elephant seal colonies throughout their annual cycle to better understand the range of their seasonal movements and patterns of gene flow. The southern elephant seal serves as a model to study links between spatio-temporal environmental variability, population dynamics, and individual movements, physiology and reproductive behavior. Understanding the patterns of dispersal and gene flow in this species is essential to adequately address these general questions.

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“…In the sea, the Southern elephant seal is able to perform long movements, reaching regions up to 5000 km far from their areas of reproduction and feeding (14). They are considered important predators in the food web (15).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Residues of Persistent Organochlorine Contaminants in Southern Elephant Seals (Mirounga leonina) from Elephant Island, Antarctica

Filho

Metcalfe

et al. 2007

Environ. Sci. Technol.

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Contamination of blubber tissues by organochlorine pesticides (OC) and PCBs was assessed in female and male pups and juveniles, as well as in adult females and subdominant adult males of the Southern elephant seal, Mirounga leonina, from Elephant Island in the Antarctic Peninsula. All residues of persistent organochlorine contaminants analyzed were found in blubber samples, except for beta-HCH, endosulfan II, endrin, heptachlor, and aldrin. The relative concentrations of the analytes detected were sigmaDDT > sigmaPCB > sigmachlordane > mirex > dieldrin > HCB> sigmaendosulfan > methoxychlor > sigmaHCHs > other OC pesticides. OC and PCBs concentrations were 1 or 2 orders of magnitude lower than those found in pinnipeds from northern hemisphere. The ratio sigmaDDT/sigmaPCB was higher in southern elephant seals. The relative importance of some OC residues indicates that pesticides used either currently or in the recent past in countries in the southern hemisphere are the sources of contamination in the Antarctic region. Data showed that concentrations of contaminants generally increased from pups < juveniles < adults and suggested that pups accumulated contaminants through transfer from the mother seals via transplacental and lactational routes.

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Movement of southern elephant seals (Mirounga leonina L.) from Elephant Is. South Shetlands, Antarctica

Abstract: In 1999, at-sea activity of two young southern elephant seal males (Mirounga leonina)

Cited by 9 publications

References 18 publications

Adult male southern elephant seals from King George Island utilize the Weddell Sea

Adult male southern elephant seals from King George Island utilize the Weddell Sea

Genetic diversity in a moulting colony of southern elephant seals in comparison with breeding colonies

Residues of Persistent Organochlorine Contaminants in Southern Elephant Seals (Mirounga leonina) from Elephant Island, Antarctica

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