Identifying Important Atlantic Areas for the conservation of Balearic shearwaters: spatial overlap with conservation areas

• Published in: Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography
• Main Authors: Pérez-Roda, Amparo, Delord, Karine, Boué, Amélie, Arcos, Jose Manuel, David, Garcia-Garcia, Micol, Thierry, Weimerskirch, Henri, Pinaud, David, Louzao, Maite
• Other Authors: AZTI Fundazioa, Centre d'Études Biologiques de Chizé - UMR 7372 (CEBC), Université de La Rochelle (ULR)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement (INRAE), LPO/ Birdlife France, SEO/BirdLife, Iniciativa de Recerca de Biodiversitat de les Illes (IRBI), Ligue pour la Protection des Oiseaux, Bird Life International Partner in France, Instituto Espanol de Oceanografia, Instituto Español de Oceanografía
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2017
• Subjects: Non-breeding staging dynamic; Natura 2000 network; Marine Important Bird Areas; Regional Fisheries Management Organisations; Geolocation; [SDE]Environmental Sciences; North East Atlantic
• Online Access: https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01502972; https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr2.2016.11.011

International audience Marine protected areas (MPAs) are considered one of the main tools in both fisheries and conservation management to protect threatened species and their habitats around the globe. However, MPAs are underrepresented in marine environments compared to terrestrial environments. Within this context, we studied the Atlantic non-breeding distribution of the southern population of Balearic shearwaters (Puffinus mauretanicus) breeding in Ibiza during the 2011-2012 period based on global location sensing (GLS) devices. Our objectives were (1) to identify overall Important Atlantic Areas (IAAs) from a southern population, (2) to describe spatio-temporal patterns of oceanographic habitat use, and (3) to assess whether existing conservation areas (Natura 2000 sites and marine Important Bird Areas (IBAs)) cover the main IAAs of Balearic shearwaters. Our results highlighted that the Atlantic staging (from June to October in 2011) dynamic of the southern population was driven by individual segregation at both spatial and temporal scales. Individuals ranged in the North-East Atlantic over four main IAAs (Bay of Biscay: BoB, Western Iberian shelf: WIS, Gulf of Cadiz: GoC, West of Morocco: WoM). While most individuals spent more time on the WIS or in the GoC, a small number of birds visited IAAs at the extremes of their Atlantic distribution range (i.e., BoB and WoM). The chronology of the arrivals to the IAAs showed a latitudinal gradient with northern areas reached earlier during the Atlantic staging. The IAAs coincided with the most productive areas (higher chlorophyll a values) in the NE Atlantic between July and October. The spatial overlap between IAAs and conservation areas was higher for Natura 2000 sites than marine IBAs (areas with and without legal protection, respectively). Concerning the use of these areas, a slightly higher proportion of estimated positions fell within marine IBAs compared to designated Natura 2000 sites, with Spanish and Portuguese conservation areas being the most visited. ...