Dive depth and dive duration data of male southern elephant seals from Marion Island between 2004 and 2008 with links to datasets ...
We describe the habitat use of 22 male southern elephant seals (Mirounga leonina) satellite tagged at Marion Island between 2004 and 2008. While a few areas of increased utilization appeared to be associated with areas of shallower bathymetry (such as sea-floor ridges and fracture zones), seals in o...
Main Authors: | , , , , |
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Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
Language: | English |
Published: |
PANGAEA
2013
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Subjects: | |
Online Access: | https://dx.doi.org/10.1594/pangaea.800262 https://doi.pangaea.de/10.1594/PANGAEA.800262 |
Summary: | We describe the habitat use of 22 male southern elephant seals (Mirounga leonina) satellite tagged at Marion Island between 2004 and 2008. While a few areas of increased utilization appeared to be associated with areas of shallower bathymetry (such as sea-floor ridges and fracture zones), seals in our study did not target other areas of shallow bathymetry within close proximity to Marion Island. Rather, most elephant seals foraged pelagically over very deep water where much variation was evident in diel vertical migration strategies. These strategies resulted in generally deeper and longer dives than what has been reported for male elephant seals from other colonies. No significant differences were recorded for dive durations or dive depths between adults and sub-adults. However, younger animals displayed a positive relationship between dive durations and age, as well as between dive depths and age, while these relationships became negative for older animals. Mixed model outputs suggested that seals ... |
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