Using stable isotopes to determine foraging areas of leatherback sea turtles: limitations of the isotope tracking technique in the western Atlantic Ocean
"A thesis presented to the faculty of Moss Landing Marine Laboratories." ABSTRACT: Reproductive output has long been linked to habitat quality and resource availability. Individuals foraging in high-quality habitats with high resource availability will have better body conditions and highe...
Main Author: | |
---|---|
Other Authors: | , , |
Format: | Master Thesis |
Language: | English |
Published: |
Moss Landing Marine Laboratories
2020
|
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12680/fn1074546 |
id |
ftcalifstateuniv:oai:scholarworks:fn1074546 |
---|---|
record_format |
openpolar |
spelling |
ftcalifstateuniv:oai:scholarworks:fn1074546 2024-09-30T14:39:22+00:00 Using stable isotopes to determine foraging areas of leatherback sea turtles: limitations of the isotope tracking technique in the western Atlantic Ocean Sharon Hsu Birgitte I. McDonald James T. Harvey Jeffrey A. Seminoff 2020 https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12680/fn1074546 English eng Moss Landing Marine Laboratories San José State University http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12680/fn1074546 http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/?creator Copyright by Sharon Hsu 2020 Leatherback turtle Stable isotopes in ecological research Masters Thesis 2020 ftcalifstateuniv https://doi.org/20.500.12680/fn1074546 2024-09-10T17:06:14Z "A thesis presented to the faculty of Moss Landing Marine Laboratories." ABSTRACT: Reproductive output has long been linked to habitat quality and resource availability. Individuals foraging in high-quality habitats with high resource availability will have better body conditions and higher survival rates, as well as greater reproductive output. Post-nesting, Western Caribbean leatherback turtles are known to migrate to at least two foraging regions: the western North Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico. This study had three objectives: [1] measure δ13C and δ15N values in bulk skin tissue of females nesting in Parismina, Costa Rica to reveal prior foraging region; [2] assess influence of foraging region on female body size and reproductive output; and [3] conduct a comprehensive review of existing stable isotope data for various taxa (from baseline producers to higher order consumers) and create δ13C and δ15N isoscapes to use as a reference for the Gulf of Mexico and western North Atlantic. It was not possible to infer foraging region for skin samples collected in Parismina based on stable isotope values, nor was there a relationship between stable carbon values and reproductive output. Synthesized isoscapes from published stable isotope data showed substantial variation between taxa and sampling regions. Stable carbon values were higher in the Gulf of Mexico than the western North Atlantic for leatherbacks, but no other consistent trends were distinguishable. Although I was unable to validate it as a primary technique to study leatherback movements between nesting and foraging grounds, stable isotope analysis still holds important conservation value for leatherbacks in conjunction with satellite tracking. This study highlights the need for more stable isotope data and longer-term data collection. RELATED TITLE: https://csu-mlml.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/01CALS_MLM/136dcpr/alma991000283589402913 Master Thesis North Atlantic Scholarworks from California State University |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Scholarworks from California State University |
op_collection_id |
ftcalifstateuniv |
language |
English |
topic |
Leatherback turtle Stable isotopes in ecological research |
spellingShingle |
Leatherback turtle Stable isotopes in ecological research Sharon Hsu Using stable isotopes to determine foraging areas of leatherback sea turtles: limitations of the isotope tracking technique in the western Atlantic Ocean |
topic_facet |
Leatherback turtle Stable isotopes in ecological research |
description |
"A thesis presented to the faculty of Moss Landing Marine Laboratories." ABSTRACT: Reproductive output has long been linked to habitat quality and resource availability. Individuals foraging in high-quality habitats with high resource availability will have better body conditions and higher survival rates, as well as greater reproductive output. Post-nesting, Western Caribbean leatherback turtles are known to migrate to at least two foraging regions: the western North Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico. This study had three objectives: [1] measure δ13C and δ15N values in bulk skin tissue of females nesting in Parismina, Costa Rica to reveal prior foraging region; [2] assess influence of foraging region on female body size and reproductive output; and [3] conduct a comprehensive review of existing stable isotope data for various taxa (from baseline producers to higher order consumers) and create δ13C and δ15N isoscapes to use as a reference for the Gulf of Mexico and western North Atlantic. It was not possible to infer foraging region for skin samples collected in Parismina based on stable isotope values, nor was there a relationship between stable carbon values and reproductive output. Synthesized isoscapes from published stable isotope data showed substantial variation between taxa and sampling regions. Stable carbon values were higher in the Gulf of Mexico than the western North Atlantic for leatherbacks, but no other consistent trends were distinguishable. Although I was unable to validate it as a primary technique to study leatherback movements between nesting and foraging grounds, stable isotope analysis still holds important conservation value for leatherbacks in conjunction with satellite tracking. This study highlights the need for more stable isotope data and longer-term data collection. RELATED TITLE: https://csu-mlml.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/01CALS_MLM/136dcpr/alma991000283589402913 |
author2 |
Birgitte I. McDonald James T. Harvey Jeffrey A. Seminoff |
format |
Master Thesis |
author |
Sharon Hsu |
author_facet |
Sharon Hsu |
author_sort |
Sharon Hsu |
title |
Using stable isotopes to determine foraging areas of leatherback sea turtles: limitations of the isotope tracking technique in the western Atlantic Ocean |
title_short |
Using stable isotopes to determine foraging areas of leatherback sea turtles: limitations of the isotope tracking technique in the western Atlantic Ocean |
title_full |
Using stable isotopes to determine foraging areas of leatherback sea turtles: limitations of the isotope tracking technique in the western Atlantic Ocean |
title_fullStr |
Using stable isotopes to determine foraging areas of leatherback sea turtles: limitations of the isotope tracking technique in the western Atlantic Ocean |
title_full_unstemmed |
Using stable isotopes to determine foraging areas of leatherback sea turtles: limitations of the isotope tracking technique in the western Atlantic Ocean |
title_sort |
using stable isotopes to determine foraging areas of leatherback sea turtles: limitations of the isotope tracking technique in the western atlantic ocean |
publisher |
Moss Landing Marine Laboratories |
publishDate |
2020 |
url |
https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12680/fn1074546 |
genre |
North Atlantic |
genre_facet |
North Atlantic |
op_relation |
http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12680/fn1074546 |
op_rights |
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/?creator Copyright by Sharon Hsu 2020 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/20.500.12680/fn1074546 |
_version_ |
1811641962137124864 |