Addressing tagging location bias to assess space use by marine animals

Hays, Graeme C.; Rattray, Alex; Esteban, Nicole

doi:10.1111/1365-2664.13720

Cited by 15 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 37 publications

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“…The density of locations in the GoM biased the KDE map toward the GoM, possibly because of tagging site bias that may underestimate the use of areas farther away from the tagging site (Hays et al. 2020). To address this, a separate KDE map was created for each region and then combined to create a single composite map.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Identification of the Gulf of Mexico as an important high‐use habitat for leatherback turtles from Central America

et al. 2021

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Endangered leatherback sea turtles (Dermochelys coriacea) are wide‐ranging, long‐distance migrants whose movements are often associated with environmental cues. We examined the spatial distribution and habitat use for 33 satellite‐tracked leatherbacks from nesting beaches on the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica and Panama from 2004 to 2018, an important nesting population for the leatherback Northwest Atlantic Distinct Population Segment. Tracking revealed the use of two distinct regions, the Gulf of Mexico (GoM, n = 18) and the North Atlantic Ocean (NAO, n = 15). We developed density utilization maps to elucidate high‐use habitats, migration pathways, and seasonal movements. GoM leatherbacks were found in three concentrated high‐use habitats connected by a migration pathway, while NAO leatherbacks were primarily found in a single, large high‐use habitat. Leatherbacks in both regions have the potential to interact with Atlantic pelagic longline fisheries based on seasonal overlap with high fishing effort. Our findings suggest that the GoM is an important destination for leatherbacks from the Caribbean coast of Central America with seasonal movements between high‐use habitats within the GoM. While leatherbacks are utilizing high‐use habitats in both the NAO and the GoM, the proportion of individuals migrating into the GoM increased over the study period. Additionally, NAO leatherbacks have increased the distance they travel in the first 90 d. Regional differences in movement and spatial distribution of high‐use habitats are important considerations when developing conservation plans for the Northwest Atlantic leatherback population.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Identification of the Gulf of Mexico as an important high‐use habitat for leatherback turtles from Central America

et al. 2021

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“…Beyond these areas, localized movement suggests that skate probably remain undersampled by recent PIT tagging efforts (2011 to present). The implication is population‐level inferences from a handful of sites may be unrepresentative, and a wider more representative spatial distribution of CR A effort would benefit analyses of habitat preferences and the estimation of population trends (Sollmann, Gardner & Belant, 2012; Sun, Fuller & Royle, 2014; Hays, Rattray & Esteban, 2020). More sampling is also required in the winter months to clarify seasonal movement patterns, especially for males with sparser detection time series, and for the smallest size classes, which remain understudied.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Movement patterns of a Critically Endangered elasmobranch (Dipturus intermedius) in a Marine Protected Area

Lavender

Aleynik

Dodd

et al. 2021

Aquatic Conservation

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Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) are widely used in marine management, but for mobile species understanding the spatio‐temporal scale of management measures that is required to deliver conservation benefits depends on a detailed knowledge of species’ movements that is often lacking. This is especially the case for species of skate (Rajidae) for which relatively few movement studies have been conducted. In Scotland, the Loch Sunart to the Sound of Jura MPA covering 741 km2 has been designated for the conservation of the Critically Endangered flapper skate (Dipturus intermedius), but fine‐scale movements within this area remain poorly understood. A passive acoustic telemetry study which coupled acoustic tagging of 42 individuals and a static array of 58 receivers was conducted from March 2016 to June 2017. Using acoustic detection time series, angler capture–recapture data and depth time series from archival tags, fine‐scale movements of individuals were investigated. Overall, 33 of the 42 tagged individuals were detected. Residency, site fidelity and transiency were documented. Residency around receivers, lasting from 3 to more than 12 months, was documented in 16 acoustically detected individuals (48%) and all life‐history categories, but was most noticeable among females. Acoustic detections were associated with depth, salinity and season, but there was no evidence that individuals formed close‐knit groups in the areas in which they were detected. Taken together with historical occurrence records of flapper skate, the prevalence and scale of residency documented here suggest that the MPA is sufficiently large to benefit a notable percentage (38 [24–52]%) of skate found in the study area over monthly and seasonal timescales. This result strengthens the case for the use of MPAs to support the conservation of flapper skate and other skate species that display similar movement patterns in areas of high local abundance.

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“…Indeed, much like conventional (non-spatial) capture-recapture, applications of animal movement models typically lack a clearly defined population in both space and time. Furthermore, population-level inferences about animal movement and space use are typically based on a relatively small (and non-random) sample of telemetered individuals (e.g., Hebblewhite and Haydon, 2010;Hays et al, 2020), with no attempt to account for the process by which individuals were tagged or other potential sampling biases. For example, telemetry data are often produced through sampling efforts that focus on the most accessible locations (e.g., near roads or ports) where animals are thought to be present (i.e., convenience sampling; Anderson, 2001).…”

Section: Motivationmentioning

confidence: 99%

An integrated path for spatial capture–recapture and animal movement modeling

McClintock

Abrahms

Chandler

et al. 2021

Ecology

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Ecologists and conservation biologists increasingly rely on spatial capture-recapture (SCR) and movement modeling to study animal populations. Historically, SCR has focused on population-level processes (e.g., vital rates, abundance, density, and distribution), while animal movement modeling has focused on the behavior of individuals (e.g., activity budgets, resource selection, migration). Even though animal movement is clearly a driver of population-level patterns and dynamics, technical and conceptual developments to date have not forged a firm link between the two fields. Instead, movement modeling has typically focused on the individual level without providing a coherent scaling from individual-to population-level processes, while SCR has typically focused on the population level while greatly simplifying the movement processes that give rise to the observations underlying these models. In our view, the integration of SCR and animal movement modeling has tremendous potential for allowing ecologists to scale up from individuals to populations and advancing the types of inferences that can be made at the intersection of population, movement, and landscape ecology. Properly accounting for complex animal movement processes can also potentially reduce bias in estimators of population-level parameters, thereby improving inferences that are critical for species conservation and management. This introductory article to the Special Feature reviews recent advances in SCR and animal movement modeling, establishes a common notation, highlights potential advantages of linking individual-level (Lagrangian) movements to population-level (Eulerian) processes, and outlines a general conceptual framework for the integration of movement and SCR models. We then identify important avenues for future research, including key challenges and potential pitfalls in the developments and applications that lie ahead.

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Addressing tagging location bias to assess space use by marine animals

Cited by 15 publications

References 37 publications

Identification of the Gulf of Mexico as an important high‐use habitat for leatherback turtles from Central America

Identification of the Gulf of Mexico as an important high‐use habitat for leatherback turtles from Central America

Movement patterns of a Critically Endangered elasmobranch (Dipturus intermedius) in a Marine Protected Area

An integrated path for spatial capture–recapture and animal movement modeling

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