Using claws to compare reproduction, stress, and diet of female bearded and ringed seals in the Bering and Chukchi seas, Alaska, between 1953-1968 and 1998-2014. ...

• Main Authors: Crain, Danielle, Karpovich, Shawna, Quakenbush, Lori, Polasek, Lori
• Format: Dataset
• Language: unknown
• Published: SEANOE 2020
• Subjects: bearded seals; ringed seals; ice seals; cortisol; progesterone; pregnancy; claws; stable isotopes; Chukchi; Erignathus barbatus; Pusa hispida; Sea ice; Alaska
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.17882/77352; https://www.seanoe.org/data/00661/77352/

Rapid climate warming is decreasing sea ice thickness, extent, and duration. Marine mammals such as bearded (Erignathus barbatus) and ringed (Pusa hispida) seals, which use sea ice for pupping, molting and resting, may be negatively affected. Claws from bearded and ringed seals store up to 14 and 12 years of sequential analyte data, respectively. These data can be used to compare reproduction, stress, and diet across decades. In this study, we compare progesterone, cortisol, and carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes in female bearded and ringed seals during 1953-1968 (pre-1968, a period prior to sea ice decline) to 1998-2014 (post-1998, a period during sea ice decline). When comparing these periods, bearded seals had statistically higher cortisol concentrations post-1998, and for both species δ13C was more negative post-1998, while progesterone and δ15N did not change. There was a positive relationship between progesterone and cortisol Z-scores for both species, except for ringed seals post-1998. There was a ...