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A framework for mapping the distribution of seabirds by integrating tracking, demography and phenology
Citation
Carneiro, APB and Pearmain, EJ and Oppel, S and Clay, TA and Phillips, RA and Bonnet-Lebrun, A-S and Wanless, RM and Abraham, E and Richard, Y and Rice, J and Handley, J and Davies, TE and Dilley, BJ and Ryan, PG and Small, C and Arata, J and Arnould, JPY and Bell, E and Bugoni, L and Campioni, L and Catry, P and Cleeland, J and Deppe, L and Elliott, G and Freeman, A and Gonzalez-Solis, J and Granadeiro, JP and Gremillet, D and Landers, TJ and Makhado, A and Nel, D and Nicholls, DG and Rexer-Huber, K and Robertson, CJR and Sagar, PM and Scofield, P and Stahl, J-C and Stanworth, A and Stevens, KL and Trathan, PN and Thompson, DR and Torres, L and Walker, K and Waugh, SM and Weimerskirch, H and Dias, MP, A framework for mapping the distribution of seabirds by integrating tracking, demography and phenology, Journal of Applied Ecology, 57, (3) pp. 514-525. ISSN 1365-2664 (2020) [Refereed Article]
Copyright Statement
Copyright 2020 British Ecological Society
DOI: doi:10.1111/1365-2664.13568
Abstract
- The identification of geographic areas where the densities of animals are highest across their annual cycles is a crucial step in conservation planning. In marine environments, however, it can be particularly difficult to map the distribution of species, and the methods used are usually biased towards adults, neglecting the distribution of other life‐history stages even though they can represent a substantial proportion of the total population.
- Here we develop a methodological framework for estimating population‐level density distributions of seabirds, integrating tracking data across the main life‐history stages (adult breeders and non‐breeders, juveniles and immatures). We incorporate demographic information (adult and juvenile/immature survival, breeding frequency and success, age at first breeding) and phenological data (average timing of breeding and migration) to weight distribution maps according to the proportion of the population represented by each life‐history stage.
- We demonstrate the utility of this framework by applying it to 22 species of albatrosses and petrels that are of conservation concern due to interactions with fisheries. Because juveniles, immatures and non‐breeding adults account for 47%–81% of all individuals of the populations analysed, ignoring the distributions of birds in these stages leads to biased estimates of overlap with threats, and may misdirect management and conservation efforts. Population‐level distribution maps using only adult distributions underestimated exposure to longline fishing effort by 18%–42%, compared with overlap scores based on data from all life‐history stages.
- Synthesis and applications. Our framework synthesizes and improves on previous approaches to estimate seabird densities at sea, is applicable for data‐poor situations, and provides a standard and repeatable method that can be easily updated as new tracking and demographic data become available. We provide scripts in the R language and a Shiny app to facilitate future applications of our approach. We recommend that where sufficient tracking data are available, this framework be used to assess overlap of seabirds with at‐sea threats such as overharvesting, fisheries bycatch, shipping, offshore industry and pollutants. Based on such an analysis, conservation interventions could be directed towards areas where they have the greatest impact on populations.
Item Details
| Item Type: | Refereed Article |
|---|---|
| Keywords: | albatrosses, at-sea threats, conservation, distributions, longline fisheries, megafauna, petrels, seabird density |
| Research Division: | Biological Sciences |
| Research Group: | Ecology |
| Research Field: | Marine and estuarine ecology (incl. marine ichthyology) |
| Objective Division: | Environmental Management |
| Objective Group: | Marine systems and management |
| Objective Field: | Rehabilitation or conservation of marine environments |
| UTAS Author: | Cleeland, J (Dr Jaimie Cleeland) |
| ID Code: | 137971 |
| Year Published: | 2020 |
| Web of Science® Times Cited: | 39 |
| Deposited By: | Fisheries and Aquaculture |
| Deposited On: | 2020-03-17 |
| Last Modified: | 2020-05-25 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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