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Helenius LK, Head EJH, Jekielek P, Orphanides CD, Pepin P, Perrin G, Plourde S, Ringuette M, Runge JA, Walsh HJ, Johnson CL. Spatial variability in size and lipid content of the marine copepod Calanus finmarchicus across the Northwest Atlantic continental shelves: implications for North Atlantic right whale prey quality. JOURNAL OF PLANKTON RESEARCH 2024; 46:25-40. [PMID: 38486837 PMCID: PMC10939373 DOI: 10.1093/plankt/fbad047] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2023] [Accepted: 10/10/2023] [Indexed: 03/17/2024]
Abstract
Copepod size and energy content are influenced by regional and seasonal variation in temperature and food conditions, with implications for planktivorous consumers such as the endangered North Atlantic right whale (Eubalaena glacialis). Historical data (1990-2020) on Calanus finmarchicus stage CV copepodite prosome length and oil sac metrics were analyzed to determine the extent of variation in individual body size and estimated lipid and energy content in five regions of the Northwest Atlantic continental shelves [Gulf of Maine (GoM), Scotian Shelf (SS), Gulf of St. Lawrence (GSL), St. Lawrence Estuary (SLE) and Newfoundland Shelf]. Large-scale spatial patterns in size and lipid content were related to latitude, indicating that C. finmarchicus CV in the GSL and SLE were historically larger in body size, and had significantly higher lipid content compared with those in the GoM and the SS. The observed patterns of C. finmarchicus CV size and lipid storage capacity suggest that regional variation in whale prey energy content can play a role in the suitability of current and future whale foraging habitats in the Northwest Atlantic, with the larger lipid-rich individuals in the GSL providing a high-quality diet compared with those in southern areas.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura K Helenius
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Bedford Institute of Oceanography, P.O. Box 1006, Dartmouth, NS B2Y 4A2, Canada
| | - Erica J H Head
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Bedford Institute of Oceanography, P.O. Box 1006, Dartmouth, NS B2Y 4A2, Canada
| | - Phoebe Jekielek
- School of Marine Sciences, University of Maine, 5706 Aubert Hall, Orono, ME 04469-5706, USA
| | | | - Pierre Pepin
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Centre, P.O. Box 5667, St. John's, NL A1C 5X1, Canada
| | - Geneviève Perrin
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Institut Maurice-Lamontagne, P.O. Box 1000, Mont-Joli, QC G5H 3Z4, Canada
| | - Stéphane Plourde
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Institut Maurice-Lamontagne, P.O. Box 1000, Mont-Joli, QC G5H 3Z4, Canada
| | - Marc Ringuette
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Bedford Institute of Oceanography, P.O. Box 1006, Dartmouth, NS B2Y 4A2, Canada
| | - Jeffrey A Runge
- School of Marine Sciences, University of Maine, 5706 Aubert Hall, Orono, ME 04469-5706, USA
| | - Harvey J Walsh
- NOAA, NMFS, Northeast Fisheries Science Center, 28 Tarzwell Drive, Narragansett, RI 02882, USA
| | - Catherine L Johnson
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Bedford Institute of Oceanography, P.O. Box 1006, Dartmouth, NS B2Y 4A2, Canada
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Rioux È, Cabrol J, Lesage V. Long-term evolution of the structure of the St. Lawrence (Canada) marine ecosystem in the context of climate change and anthropogenic activities: An isotopic perceptive. Ecol Evol 2023; 13:e10740. [PMID: 38034343 PMCID: PMC10684986 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.10740] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2023] [Revised: 10/31/2023] [Accepted: 11/03/2023] [Indexed: 12/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Documenting long-term changes in the trophic structure of food webs and how species respond to these changes is essential to forecast their vulnerability and resilience to environmental stressors. Over the past decades, the St. Lawrence marine ecosystem (Canada) has experienced major changes in its physical, chemical, and biological conditions from overfishing, acoustic and chemical pollution, climate change, and the increased abundance of some top predators. These changes have likely affected the trophodynamics of the ecosystem, and are suspected to have deleterious effects on endangered species of mammals and other components of the ecosystem, such as blue whales (Balaenoptera musculus), fin whales (B. physalus), and beluga (Delphinapterus leucas). This study examined the trophic structure of the St. Lawrence marine ecosystem, including the isotopic niche of various species, over two periods of contrasting pressures from anthropogenic and climatic stressors (1995-2003 vs. 2019-2021). Stable isotope ratios were measured in 1240 samples of 21 species of marine invertebrates, fishes, and mammals sampled during both periods. A significant change in the isotopic value and niche position between periods is observed in most of the sampled species. While the direction of change and effect size were not uniform among species, these changes confirmed that substantial modifications in community structure have occurred over time. Niche overlap decreased considerably among some of the pelagic and demersal fishes, and among whale species during the most recent period. Combined with a concomitant reduction in niche breadth in several species, these observations suggested that resource sharing was limited among these species. This study highlighted some degree of dietary plasticity in several species, and a long-term change in the trophic structure of the St. Lawrence marine ecosystem, with likely effects on diet composition and energetics of several populations, including endangered species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ève Rioux
- Fisheries and Oceans CanadaMaurice Lamontagne InstituteMont‐JoliQuébecCanada
| | - Jory Cabrol
- Fisheries and Oceans CanadaMaurice Lamontagne InstituteMont‐JoliQuébecCanada
| | - Véronique Lesage
- Fisheries and Oceans CanadaMaurice Lamontagne InstituteMont‐JoliQuébecCanada
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Barlow DR, Klinck H, Ponirakis D, Branch TA, Torres LG. Environmental conditions and marine heatwaves influence blue whale foraging and reproductive effort. Ecol Evol 2023; 13:e9770. [PMID: 36861024 PMCID: PMC9968652 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.9770] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2022] [Revised: 01/08/2023] [Accepted: 01/10/2023] [Indexed: 03/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Animal behavior is motivated by the fundamental need to feed and reproduce, and these behaviors can be inferred from spatiotemporal variations in biological signals such as vocalizations. Yet, linking foraging and reproductive effort to environmental drivers can be challenging for wide-ranging predator species. Blue whales are acoustically active marine predators that produce two distinct vocalizations: song and D calls. We examined environmental correlates of these vocalizations using continuous recordings from five hydrophones in the South Taranaki Bight region of Aotearoa New Zealand to investigate call behavior relative to ocean conditions and infer life history patterns. D calls were strongly correlated with oceanographic drivers of upwelling in spring and summer, indicating associations with foraging effort. In contrast, song displayed a highly seasonal pattern with peak intensity in fall, which aligned with the timing of conception inferred from whaling records. Finally, during a marine heatwave, reduced foraging (inferred from D calls) was followed by lower reproductive effort (inferred from song intensity).
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Affiliation(s)
- Dawn R. Barlow
- Geospatial Ecology of Marine Megafauna Lab, Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Sciences, Marine Mammal InstituteOregon State UniversityNewportOregonUSA
| | - Holger Klinck
- K. Lisa Yang Center for Conservation BioacousticsCornell UniversityIthacaNew YorkUSA,Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Sciences, Marine Mammal InstituteOregon State UniversityNewportOregonUSA
| | - Dimitri Ponirakis
- K. Lisa Yang Center for Conservation BioacousticsCornell UniversityIthacaNew YorkUSA
| | - Trevor A. Branch
- School of Aquatic and Fisheries SciencesUniversity of WashingtonSeattleWashingtonUSA
| | - Leigh G. Torres
- Geospatial Ecology of Marine Megafauna Lab, Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Sciences, Marine Mammal InstituteOregon State UniversityNewportOregonUSA
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Carroll EL, Riekkola L, Andrews-Goff V, Baker CS, Constantine R, Cole R, Goetz K, Harcourt R, Lundquist D, Meyer C, Ogle M, O’Rorke R, Patenaude N, Russ R, Stuck E, van der Reis AL, Zerbini AN, Childerhouse S. New Zealand southern right whale (Eubalaena australis; Tohorā nō Aotearoa) behavioural phenology, demographic composition, and habitat use in Port Ross, Auckland Islands over three decades: 1998–2021. Polar Biol 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s00300-022-03076-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
AbstractChanges in habitat availability and prey abundance are predicted to adversely influence survival and reproduction of wildlife in the Southern Ocean. Some populations of southern right whale (SRW; Eubalaena australis) are showing dramatic changes in habitat use. Surveys were undertaken in the austral winters of 2020 and 2021 at the key nursery and socialising ground for New Zealand SRWs: Port Ross, Auckland Islands, with 548 encounters and 599 skin biopsy samples collected. Data from these two surveys spanned peak periods of use and were used to test the hypothesis there have been shifts in the phenology, demographic composition and behaviour of SRWs using the Auckland Islands over the past three decades. The behavioural phenology and demographic composition of SRW resembles that observed in the 1990s. In contrast, the proportion of groups containing cow-calf pairs increased from 20% in the 1998 survey to 50% in 2020/21. These changes are consistent with a growing population undergoing strong recruitment, not limited by food resources. Continued use of Port Ross by all SRW demographic classes confirms this as key habitat for SRW in New Zealand waters, and we support increased enforcement of existing management measures to reduce whale-vessel interactions in this remote subantarctic archipelago.
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McHuron EA, Adamczak S, Arnould JPY, Ashe E, Booth C, Bowen WD, Christiansen F, Chudzinska M, Costa DP, Fahlman A, Farmer NA, Fortune SME, Gallagher CA, Keen KA, Madsen PT, McMahon CR, Nabe-Nielsen J, Noren DP, Noren SR, Pirotta E, Rosen DAS, Speakman CN, Villegas-Amtmann S, Williams R. Key questions in marine mammal bioenergetics. CONSERVATION PHYSIOLOGY 2022; 10:coac055. [PMID: 35949259 PMCID: PMC9358695 DOI: 10.1093/conphys/coac055] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2022] [Revised: 06/28/2022] [Accepted: 07/20/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Bioenergetic approaches are increasingly used to understand how marine mammal populations could be affected by a changing and disturbed aquatic environment. There remain considerable gaps in our knowledge of marine mammal bioenergetics, which hinder the application of bioenergetic studies to inform policy decisions. We conducted a priority-setting exercise to identify high-priority unanswered questions in marine mammal bioenergetics, with an emphasis on questions relevant to conservation and management. Electronic communication and a virtual workshop were used to solicit and collate potential research questions from the marine mammal bioenergetic community. From a final list of 39 questions, 11 were identified as 'key' questions because they received votes from at least 50% of survey participants. Key questions included those related to energy intake (prey landscapes, exposure to human activities) and expenditure (field metabolic rate, exposure to human activities, lactation, time-activity budgets), energy allocation priorities, metrics of body condition and relationships with survival and reproductive success and extrapolation of data from one species to another. Existing tools to address key questions include labelled water, animal-borne sensors, mark-resight data from long-term research programs, environmental DNA and unmanned vehicles. Further validation of existing approaches and development of new methodologies are needed to comprehensively address some key questions, particularly for cetaceans. The identification of these key questions can provide a guiding framework to set research priorities, which ultimately may yield more accurate information to inform policies and better conserve marine mammal populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth A McHuron
- Corresponding author: Cooperative Institute for Climate, Ocean, and Ecosystem Studies, University of Washington, WA, 98195, USA.
| | - Stephanie Adamczak
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Department, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064, USA
| | - John P Y Arnould
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Burwood, VIC 3125, Australia
| | - Erin Ashe
- Oceans Initiative, Seattle, WA, 98102, USA
| | - Cormac Booth
- SMRU Consulting, Scottish Oceans Institute, University of St. Andrews, St. Andrews KY16 8LB, UK
| | - W Don Bowen
- Biology Department, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS B3H 4R2, Canada
- Population Ecology Division, Bedford Institute of Oceanography, Dartmouth, NS B2Y 4A2, Canada
| | - Fredrik Christiansen
- Aarhus Institute of Advanced Studies, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark
- Zoophysiology, Department of Biology, Aarhus University, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark
- Center for Sustainable Aquatic Ecosystems, Harry Butler Institute, Murdoch, Murdoch University, WA 6150, Australia
| | - Magda Chudzinska
- SMRU Consulting, Scottish Oceans Institute, University of St. Andrews, St. Andrews KY16 8LB, UK
- Sea Mammal Research Unit, Scottish Oceans Institute, University of St. Andrews, St. Andrews KY16 9XL, UK
| | - Daniel P Costa
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Department, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064, USA
| | - Andreas Fahlman
- Fundación Oceanogràfic de la Comunitat Valenciana, 46005 Valencia, Spain
- Kolmården Wildlife Park, 618 92 Kolmården, Sweden
| | - Nicholas A Farmer
- NOAA/National Marine Fisheries Service, Southeast Regional Office, St. Petersburg, FL, 33701, USA
| | - Sarah M E Fortune
- Department of Oceanography, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS B3H 4R2, Canada
| | - Cara A Gallagher
- Plant Ecology and Nature Conservation, University of Potsdam, 14476 Potsdam, Germany
| | - Kelly A Keen
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Department, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064, USA
| | - Peter T Madsen
- Zoophysiology, Department of Biology, Aarhus University, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark
| | - Clive R McMahon
- IMOS Animal Tagging, Sydney Institute of Marine Science, Mosman, NSW 2088, Australia
| | | | - Dawn P Noren
- Conservation Biology Division, Northwest Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Seattle, WA, 98112, USA
| | - Shawn R Noren
- Institute of Marine Science, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, 95060, USA
| | - Enrico Pirotta
- Centre for Research into Ecological and Environmental Modelling, University of St. Andrews, St. Andrews KY16 9LZ, UK
| | - David A S Rosen
- Institute for Oceans and Fisheries, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1ZA, Canada
| | - Cassie N Speakman
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Burwood, VIC 3125, Australia
| | - Stella Villegas-Amtmann
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Department, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064, USA
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Crowe LM, Brown MW, Corkeron PJ, Hamilton PK, Ramp C, Ratelle S, Vanderlaan ASM, Cole TVN. In plane sight: a mark-recapture analysis of North Atlantic right whales in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. ENDANGER SPECIES RES 2021. [DOI: 10.3354/esr01156] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
North Atlantic right whales Eubalaena glacialis are most commonly observed along the eastern seaboard of North America; however, their distribution and occupancy patterns have become less predictable in the last decade. This study explored the individual right whales captured photographically from both dedicated and opportunistic sources from 2015 to 2019 in the Gulf of St. Lawrence (GSL), an area previously understudied for right whale presence. A total of 187 individuals, including reproductive females, were identified from all sources over this period. In years when more substantial survey effort occurred (2017-2019), similar numbers of individuals were sighted (mean = 133, SD = 1.5), and dedicated mark-recapture aerial surveys were highly effective at capturing almost all of the whales estimated in the region (2019: N = 137, 95% CI = 135-147). A high rate of inter-annual return was observed between all 5 study years, with 95% of the animals seen in 2019 sighted previously. Capture rates indicated potential residencies as long as 5 mo, and observed behaviors included feeding and socializing. Individuals were observed in the northern and southern GSL, regions divided by a major shipping corridor. Analyses suggest that individuals mostly moved less than 9.1 km d-1, although rates of up to 79.8 km d-1 were also calculated. The GSL is currently an important habitat for 40% of this Critically Endangered species, which underscores how crucial protection measures are in this area.
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Affiliation(s)
- LM Crowe
- Integrated Statistics Under Contract to the Northeast Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Woods Hole, MA 02543, USA
| | - MW Brown
- Canadian Whale Institute, Welshpool, New Brunswick, Canada, E5E 1B6
- Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life, New England Aquarium, Boston, MA 02110, USA
| | - PJ Corkeron
- Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life, New England Aquarium, Boston, MA 02110, USA
- Biology Department, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, MA 02543, USA
| | - PK Hamilton
- Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life, New England Aquarium, Boston, MA 02110, USA
| | - C Ramp
- Mingan Island Cetacean Study, St. Lambert, Québec, Canada, J4P 1T3
- Sea Mammal Research Unit, University of St. Andrews, St. Andrews, Fife KY16 8LB, UK
| | - S Ratelle
- Gulf Fisheries Center, Department of Fisheries and Oceans, Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada, E1C 9B6
| | - ASM Vanderlaan
- Bedford Institute of Oceanography, Department of Fisheries and Oceans, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada, B2Y 4A2
| | - TVN Cole
- Northeast Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Woods Hole, MA 02543, USA
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