Influence of seasonality on cetacean diversity, abundance, distribution and habitat use in the western Mediterranean Sea: Implications for conservation
Abstract Cetaceans are key biological indicators of the status of marine waters and are protected under an extensive legislative framework. Research about these highly dynamic species is challenging, so seasonal cycles and patterns of distribution, especially in high sea areas, are still poorly unde...
Published in: | Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems |
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crwiley:10.1002/aqc.2758 2024-06-23T07:52:45+00:00 Influence of seasonality on cetacean diversity, abundance, distribution and habitat use in the western Mediterranean Sea: Implications for conservation Arcangeli, Antonella Campana, Ilaria Bologna, Marco A. 2017 http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/aqc.2758 https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1002%2Faqc.2758 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/aqc.2758 en eng Wiley http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems volume 27, issue 5, page 995-1010 ISSN 1052-7613 1099-0755 journal-article 2017 crwiley https://doi.org/10.1002/aqc.2758 2024-06-11T04:41:50Z Abstract Cetaceans are key biological indicators of the status of marine waters and are protected under an extensive legislative framework. Research about these highly dynamic species is challenging, so seasonal cycles and patterns of distribution, especially in high sea areas, are still poorly understood. This study contributes to improving knowledge about cetacean occurrence in largely unexplored areas of medium‐latitudes in the western Mediterranean Sea. Systematic surveys were conducted along a trans‐regional transect over 3 years (October 2012 to September 2015) allowing consistent data collection over almost 60 000 km of effort through all seasons. Seasonal cetacean diversity was investigated using a 25 km 2 grid cell as a statistical unit to explore patterns of abundance, distribution, and habitat use in three marine sectors (Sardinian–Balearic, Bonifacio Strait, Tyrrhenian). All cetacean species regularly present in the Mediterranean basin were detected, with highest occurrence in fin whale and striped dolphin, followed by bottlenose dolphin and sperm whale. The Sardinian–Balearic sector generally showed higher species richness and diversity than the Tyrrhenian, where seasonal variations were more pronounced. The study suggested seasonal movements, especially for fin whale and striped dolphin, in the Sardinian–Balearic sector with peaks of occurrence during spring/summer and lower numbers during winter/autumn, and also delivered interesting insights to rarer pelagic species. The study identified areas/seasons in which the combined effect of high species diversity, abundance, significance of hot spots and presence of juveniles require increasing conservation effort. Results underline the important contribution of continuous monitoring in high sea areas to the implementation of adaptive protection measures. Article in Journal/Newspaper Fin whale Sperm whale Wiley Online Library Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems 27 5 995 1010 |
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English |
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Abstract Cetaceans are key biological indicators of the status of marine waters and are protected under an extensive legislative framework. Research about these highly dynamic species is challenging, so seasonal cycles and patterns of distribution, especially in high sea areas, are still poorly understood. This study contributes to improving knowledge about cetacean occurrence in largely unexplored areas of medium‐latitudes in the western Mediterranean Sea. Systematic surveys were conducted along a trans‐regional transect over 3 years (October 2012 to September 2015) allowing consistent data collection over almost 60 000 km of effort through all seasons. Seasonal cetacean diversity was investigated using a 25 km 2 grid cell as a statistical unit to explore patterns of abundance, distribution, and habitat use in three marine sectors (Sardinian–Balearic, Bonifacio Strait, Tyrrhenian). All cetacean species regularly present in the Mediterranean basin were detected, with highest occurrence in fin whale and striped dolphin, followed by bottlenose dolphin and sperm whale. The Sardinian–Balearic sector generally showed higher species richness and diversity than the Tyrrhenian, where seasonal variations were more pronounced. The study suggested seasonal movements, especially for fin whale and striped dolphin, in the Sardinian–Balearic sector with peaks of occurrence during spring/summer and lower numbers during winter/autumn, and also delivered interesting insights to rarer pelagic species. The study identified areas/seasons in which the combined effect of high species diversity, abundance, significance of hot spots and presence of juveniles require increasing conservation effort. Results underline the important contribution of continuous monitoring in high sea areas to the implementation of adaptive protection measures. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Arcangeli, Antonella Campana, Ilaria Bologna, Marco A. |
spellingShingle |
Arcangeli, Antonella Campana, Ilaria Bologna, Marco A. Influence of seasonality on cetacean diversity, abundance, distribution and habitat use in the western Mediterranean Sea: Implications for conservation |
author_facet |
Arcangeli, Antonella Campana, Ilaria Bologna, Marco A. |
author_sort |
Arcangeli, Antonella |
title |
Influence of seasonality on cetacean diversity, abundance, distribution and habitat use in the western Mediterranean Sea: Implications for conservation |
title_short |
Influence of seasonality on cetacean diversity, abundance, distribution and habitat use in the western Mediterranean Sea: Implications for conservation |
title_full |
Influence of seasonality on cetacean diversity, abundance, distribution and habitat use in the western Mediterranean Sea: Implications for conservation |
title_fullStr |
Influence of seasonality on cetacean diversity, abundance, distribution and habitat use in the western Mediterranean Sea: Implications for conservation |
title_full_unstemmed |
Influence of seasonality on cetacean diversity, abundance, distribution and habitat use in the western Mediterranean Sea: Implications for conservation |
title_sort |
influence of seasonality on cetacean diversity, abundance, distribution and habitat use in the western mediterranean sea: implications for conservation |
publisher |
Wiley |
publishDate |
2017 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/aqc.2758 https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1002%2Faqc.2758 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/aqc.2758 |
genre |
Fin whale Sperm whale |
genre_facet |
Fin whale Sperm whale |
op_source |
Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems volume 27, issue 5, page 995-1010 ISSN 1052-7613 1099-0755 |
op_rights |
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1002/aqc.2758 |
container_title |
Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems |
container_volume |
27 |
container_issue |
5 |
container_start_page |
995 |
op_container_end_page |
1010 |
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1802644135679623168 |