Descriptive density models of scyphozoan jellyfish in the northern Gulf of Mexico

Aleksa, Katrina T.; Nero, Redwood W.; Wiggert, Jerry D.; Graham, William M.

doi:10.3354/meps12327

Cited by 11 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 51 publications

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“…Leatherback abundance in the Gulf of Mexico is greater during summer and early autumn months as post-nesting turtles enter the Gulf from Caribbean nesting beaches during the summer, and depart to the Caribbean in the late autumn (Aleksa et al, 2018b and here). This seasonality coincides with the increased abundance of preferred gelatinous zooplankton prey (e.g., jellyfish, Aleksa et al, 2018a).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 73%

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Leatherback Turtles in the Eastern Gulf of Mexico: Foraging and Migration Behavior During the Autumn and Winter

et al. 2021

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We deployed 19 satellite tags on foraging adult leatherback turtles, including 17 females and 2 males, captured in the northeastern Gulf of Mexico in 2015, 2018, and 2019 in order to study regional distribution and movements. Prior to our study, limited data were available from leatherbacks foraging in the Gulf of Mexico. Tag deployment durations ranged from 63 to 247 days and turtles exhibited three distinct behavior types: foraging, transiting, or rapidly switching between foraging and transiting. Some females were tracked to nesting beaches in the Caribbean. Most of the leatherbacks remained on and foraged along the west Florida continental shelf whereas a few individuals foraged in waters of the central Gulf of Mexico during the autumn and winter. In addition, migration of adult females through the Yucatan Channel indicate that this is a seasonally important area for Caribbean nesting assemblages.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 73%

“…Salinity, temperature, nutrients, distance from shore, and water movements are factors that affect the abundance of jellyfish in the Gulf of Mexico (Aleksa et al, 2018a). These factors, along with physical oceanic features, such as convergence zones and eddies, provide conditions that concentrate leatherback prey.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Leatherback Turtles in the Eastern Gulf of Mexico: Foraging and Migration Behavior During the Autumn and Winter

et al. 2021

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“…2018 b ) where their primary prey items, jellyfish, aggregate as a result of ocean physical processes, bathymetry, and behavioral responses to environmental cues (Powell and Ohman 2015, Aleksa et al. 2018 a ). Environmental cues, such as sea surface temperature (SST), ocean fronts, and the Gulf Stream current, can influence leatherback spatial distribution and movements across the seascape (Witt et al.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

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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“…Aside from the possibility that the C. mastigophora may have been advected into the Corong-Corong Bay in time with the MHW, it is also highly likely that these gelatinous creatures, together with the warm temperatures, have been in an environment that has adequate nutrients and food to induce their growth prior to the bloom. Winds, ocean currents, temperature, and nutrients are among the variables determined in literature to be influential towards jellyfish occurrences (Keesing et al 2016, Aleksa et al 2018. Coincidentally, these certain physical aspects are present during the NEM in 2020ʼs first quarter (i.e., the presence of cyclonic eddies, and parallel winds alongshore) which may have provided conditions optimal to induce coastal upwelling that can promote biological productivity to the upper ocean (NOAA 2022).…”

Section: Synthesis and Opportunities For Further Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

Co-occurrence of a marine heatwave and a reported tomato jellyfish (<i>Crambione mastigophora</i> Maas, 1903) bloom in March 2020 at El Nido, Palawan, Philippines

Quilestino-Olario

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Atup

et al. 2023

Plankton Benthos Res

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Globally, observations on marine species during marine heatwaves (MHWs) help outline the scope of the MHWʼs possible biological effects. In line with this effort, this paper presents a 2020 MHW that coincided with a reported ʻtomato jellyfishʼ (Crambione mastigophora Maas, 1903) bloom on 23 March 2020 in the Corong-Corong Bay of Palawan, Philippines. Detecting a moderate MHW from 21 March to 04 April 2020, the analysis of sea surface temperatures revealed that most areas surrounding the bloom site attained their peak positive anomalies on the same day as the reported bloom. Certain physical mechanisms present in the first quarter of 2020 may have played a role in the occurrence of both events: the presence of cyclonic eddies and parallel monsoonal winds alongshore can induce upwelling which promotes biological productivity in surface waters, while the observed weakening of winds have been associated with anomalous warming of the sea surface. Further studies are still highly recommended to determine the exact causes of the jellyfish bloom and what conditions make it more likely to happen during MHWs. However, if the C. mastigophora is hypothetically able to continually bloom amidst warming temperatures, the increasing trend of MHW frequency and intensity in the West Philippine Sea (where the reported bloom site is situated) may consequently yield more future co-occurrences. This paper aims to hopefully contribute to the existing knowledge of possible biological impacts associated with extreme marine events, especially in the Philippine context where both jellyfish blooms and MHWs are understudied.

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Descriptive density models of scyphozoan jellyfish in the northern Gulf of Mexico

Cited by 11 publications

References 51 publications

Leatherback Turtles in the Eastern Gulf of Mexico: Foraging and Migration Behavior During the Autumn and Winter

Leatherback Turtles in the Eastern Gulf of Mexico: Foraging and Migration Behavior During the Autumn and Winter

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

Co-occurrence of a marine heatwave and a reported tomato jellyfish (<i>Crambione mastigophora</i> Maas, 1903) bloom in March 2020 at El Nido, Palawan, Philippines

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