1
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Brown CV, McKnight JC, Bain AR, Tremblay JC, Patrician A, McDonald BI, Williams CI, Hindle AG, Pallin LJ, Costa DP, Dujic Z, MacLeod DB, Williams TM, Ponganis PJ, Ainslie PN. Selected and shared hematological responses to apnea in elite human free-divers and northern elephant seals ( Mirounga angustirostris). Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol 2024. [PMID: 38766773 DOI: 10.1152/ajpregu.00286.2023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2023] [Accepted: 05/09/2024] [Indexed: 05/22/2024]
Abstract
Despite elite, human free-divers achieving incredible feats in competitive free-diving, there has yet to be a study that compares consummate divers, (i.e. northern elephant seals) to highly conditioned free-divers (i.e., elite, competitive free-diving humans). Herein, we compare these two diving models and suggest that hematological traits detected in seals reflect species-specific specializations, while hematological traits shared between the two species are fundamental mammalian characteristics. Arterial blood samples were analyzed in elite, human, free-divers (n=14) during a single, maximal volitional apnea and in juvenile northern elephant seals (n=3) during rest-associated apnea. Humans and elephant seals had comparable apnea durations (~6.5 mins) and end-apneic arterial PO2 (humans: 40.4±3.0mmHg (mean±SE), seals: 27.1±5.9mmHg; p=0.2). Despite similar increases in arterial PCO2 (humans: 33±5%, seals: 16.3±5%; P=0.2), only humans experienced reductions in pH from baseline (humans: 7.45±0.01, seal: 7.39±0.02) to end apnea (humans: 7.37±0.01, seals: 7.38±0.02; p<0.0001). Hemoglobin P50 was greater in humans compared to elephant seals (29.9±1.5 and 28.7±0.6mmHg, respectively; p=0.046). Elephant seals overall had higher COHb levels (5.9±2.6%) compared to humans (0.8±1.2%; p<0.0001); however, following apnea, COHb was reduced in seals (baseline: 6.1±0.3%, end-apnea: 5.6±0.3%), but was slightly elevated in humans (baseline: 0.7±0.1%, end-apnea: 0.9±0.1%; p<0.0002, both comparisons). Our data indicate that during static apnea, seals have reduced hemoglobin P50, greater pH buffering, and increased COHb levels. The differences in hemoglobin P50 is likely due to the differences in the physiological environment between the two species during apnea, whereas enhanced pH buffering and higher COHb may represent traits selected for in elephant seals.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Anthony R Bain
- Department of Kinesiology, University of Windsor, Windsor, Ontario, Canada
| | - Joshua C Tremblay
- Cardiff School of Sport and Health Sciences, Cardiff Metropolitan University, Cardiff, United Kingdom
| | | | | | | | - Allyson G Hindle
- Life Sciences, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
| | - Logan J Pallin
- University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, United States
| | - Daniel P Costa
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, United States
| | - Zeljko Dujic
- Department of Integrative Physiology, University of Split School of Medicine, Split, Croatia
| | - David B MacLeod
- Human Pharmacology and Physiology Laboratory, Department of Anesthesiology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, United States
| | - Terrie M Williams
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California - Southern California, Santa Cruz, CA, United States
| | - Paul J Ponganis
- University of California, San Diego, San Diego, United States
| | - Philip N Ainslie
- Centre for Heart, Lung and Vascular Health, University of British Columbia, Kelowna, BC, Canada
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2
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Peterson SH, Peterson MG, Ackerman JT, Debier C, Goetsch C, Holser RR, Hückstädt LA, Johnson JC, Keates TR, McDonald BI, McHuron EA, Costa DP. Foraging behavior and age affect maternal transfer of mercury to northern elephant seal pups. Sci Rep 2024; 14:4693. [PMID: 38409311 PMCID: PMC10897339 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-54527-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2023] [Accepted: 02/13/2024] [Indexed: 02/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Deep ocean foraging northern elephant seals (Mirounga angustirostris) consume fish and squid in remote depths of the North Pacific Ocean. Contaminants bioaccumulated from prey are subsequently transferred by adult females to pups during gestation and lactation, linking pups to mercury contamination in mesopelagic food webs (200-1000 m depths). Maternal transfer of mercury to developing seal pups was related to maternal mercury contamination and was strongly correlated with maternal foraging behavior (biotelemetry and isotopes). Mercury concentrations in lanugo (hair grown in utero) were among the highest observed worldwide for young pinnipeds (geometric mean 23.01 μg/g dw, range 8.03-63.09 μg/g dw; n = 373); thus, some pups may be at an elevated risk of sub-lethal adverse health effects. Fetal mercury exposure was affected by maternal foraging geographic location and depth; mercury concentrations were highest in pups of the deepest diving, pelagic females. Moreover, pup lanugo mercury concentrations were strongly repeatable among successive pups of individual females, demonstrating relative consistency in pup mercury exposure based on maternal foraging strategies. Northern elephant seals are biosentinels of a remote deep-sea ecosystem. Our results suggest that mercury within North Pacific mesopelagic food webs may also pose an elevated risk to other mesopelagic-foraging predators and their offspring.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah H Peterson
- Western Ecological Research Center, Dixon Field Station, U.S. Geological Survey, 800 Business Park Drive Suite D, Dixon, CA, USA.
- Institute of Marine Sciences, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA.
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA.
| | - Michael G Peterson
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Joshua T Ackerman
- Western Ecological Research Center, Dixon Field Station, U.S. Geological Survey, 800 Business Park Drive Suite D, Dixon, CA, USA
| | - Cathy Debier
- Louvain Institute of Biomolecular Science and Technology, Université Catholique de Louvain, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
| | - Chandra Goetsch
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
- CSS, Inc, Fairfax, VA, USA
| | - Rachel R Holser
- Institute of Marine Sciences, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Luis A Hückstädt
- Institute of Marine Sciences, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn, UK
| | - Jennifer C Johnson
- Moss Landing Marine Labs, San Jose State University, Moss Landing, CA, USA
| | - Theresa R Keates
- Department of Ocean Sciences, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | | | - Elizabeth A McHuron
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Daniel P Costa
- Institute of Marine Sciences, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
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3
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Cole MR, Ware C, McHuron EA, Costa DP, Ponganis PJ, McDonald BI. Deep dives and high tissue density increase mean dive costs in California sea lions (Zalophus californianus). J Exp Biol 2023; 226:jeb246059. [PMID: 37345474 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.246059] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2023] [Accepted: 06/14/2023] [Indexed: 06/23/2023]
Abstract
Diving is central to the foraging strategies of many marine mammals and seabirds. Still, the effect of dive depth on foraging cost remains elusive because energy expenditure is difficult to measure at fine temporal scales in wild animals. We used depth and acceleration data from eight lactating California sea lions (Zalophus californianus) to model body density and investigate the effect of dive depth and tissue density on rates of energy expenditure. We calculated body density in 5 s intervals from the rate of gliding descent. We modeled body density across depth in each dive, revealing high tissue densities and diving lung volumes (DLVs). DLV increased with dive depth in four individuals. We used the buoyancy calculated from dive-specific body-density models and drag calculated from swim speed to estimate metabolic power and cost of transport in 5 s intervals during descents and ascents. Deeper dives required greater mean power for round-trip vertical transit, especially in individuals with higher tissue density. These trends likely follow from increased mean swim speed and buoyant hinderance that increasingly outweighs buoyant aid in deeper dives. This suggests that deep diving is either a 'high-cost, high-reward' strategy or an energetically expensive option to access prey when prey in shallow waters are limited, and that poor body condition may increase the energetic costs of deep diving. These results add to our mechanistic understanding of how foraging strategy and body condition affect energy expenditure in wild breath-hold divers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mason R Cole
- Moss Landing Marine Laboratories, San Jose State University, 8272 Moss Landing Rd, Moss Landing, CA 95039, USA
| | - Colin Ware
- Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03924, USA
| | - Elizabeth A McHuron
- Cooperative Institute for Climate, Ocean, and Ecosystem Studies, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98105, USA
| | - Daniel P Costa
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - Paul J Ponganis
- Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego, Center for Marine Biodiversity and Biomedicine, 8655 Kennel Way, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Birgitte I McDonald
- Moss Landing Marine Laboratories, San Jose State University, 8272 Moss Landing Rd, Moss Landing, CA 95039, USA
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Peterson SH, Ackerman JT, Holser RR, McDonald BI, Costa DP, Crocker DE. Mercury Bioaccumulation and Cortisol Interact to Influence Endocrine and Immune Biomarkers in a Free-Ranging Marine Mammal. Environ Sci Technol 2023; 57:5678-5692. [PMID: 36996077 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.2c08974] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/19/2023]
Abstract
Mercury bioaccumulation from deep-ocean prey and the extreme life history strategies of adult female northern elephant seals (Mirounga angustirostris) provide a unique system to assess the interactive effects of mercury and stress on animal health by quantifying blood biomarkers in relation to mercury (skeletal muscle and blood mercury) and cortisol concentrations. The thyroid hormone thyroxine (tT4) and the antibody immunoglobulin E (IgE) were associated with mercury and cortisol concentrations interactively, where the magnitude and direction of the association of each biomarker with mercury or cortisol changed depending on the concentration of the other factor. For example, when cortisol concentrations were lowest, tT4 was positively related to muscle mercury, whereas tT4 had a negative relationship with muscle mercury in seals that had the highest cortisol concentrations. Additionally, we observed that two thyroid hormones, triiodothyronine (tT3) and reverse triiodothyronine (rT3), were negatively (tT3) and positively (rT3) associated with mercury concentrations and cortisol in an additive manner. As an example, tT3 concentrations in late breeding seals at the median cortisol concentration decreased by 14% across the range of observed muscle mercury concentrations. We also observed that immunoglobulin M (IgM), the pro-inflammatory cytokine IL-6 (IL-6), and a reproductive hormone, estradiol, were negatively related to muscle mercury concentrations but were not related to cortisol. Specifically, estradiol concentrations in late molting seals decreased by 50% across the range of muscle mercury concentrations. These results indicate important physiological effects of mercury on free-ranging apex marine predators and interactions between mercury bioaccumulation and extrinsic stressors. Deleterious effects on animals' abilities to maintain homeostasis (thyroid hormones), fight off pathogens and disease (innate and adaptive immune system), and successfully reproduce (endocrine system) can have significant individual- and population-level consequences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah H Peterson
- U.S. Geological Survey, Western Ecological Research Center, Dixon Field Station, Dixon, California 95620, United States of America
- Institute of Marine Sciences, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, California 95064, United States of America
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, California 95064, United States of America
| | - Joshua T Ackerman
- U.S. Geological Survey, Western Ecological Research Center, Dixon Field Station, Dixon, California 95620, United States of America
| | - Rachel R Holser
- Institute of Marine Sciences, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, California 95064, United States of America
| | - Birgitte I McDonald
- Moss Landing Marine Labs, San Jose State University, Moss Landing, California 95039, United States of America
| | - Daniel P Costa
- Institute of Marine Sciences, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, California 95064, United States of America
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, California 95064, United States of America
| | - Daniel E Crocker
- Department of Biology, Sonoma State University, Rohnert Park, California 94928, United States of America
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Cooley LA, Costa DP, Hannah SM, Hindle AG, Holser RR, Horning M, Klinck H, Ponganis PJ, Williams CL, McDonald BI. Research Handling Effects on Stress Hormones, Blood Parameters, and Heart Rate in Juvenile Northern Elephant Seals (
Mirounga angustirostris
). FASEB J 2022. [DOI: 10.1096/fasebj.2022.36.s1.r5726] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Daniel P. Costa
- Ecology and Evolutionary BiologyUniversity of California, Santa CruzSanta CruzCA
| | | | | | - Rachel R. Holser
- Ecology and Evolutionary BiologyUniversity of California, Santa CruzSanta CruzCA
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Hannah SM, Williams CL, Hindle AG, Cooley LA, Ponganis PJ, Horning M, Klinck H, Costa DP, McDonald BI. Examining the Plasticity of the Dive Response in Relation to Dive Behavior of Northern Elephant Seals. FASEB J 2022. [DOI: 10.1096/fasebj.2022.36.s1.r5937] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
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7
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McDonald BI, Elmegaard SL, Johnson M, Wisniewska DM, Rojano-Doñate L, Galatius A, Siebert U, Teilmann J, Madsen PT. High heart rates in hunting harbour porpoises. Proc Biol Sci 2021; 288:20211596. [PMID: 34753357 PMCID: PMC8580435 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2021.1596] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
The impressive breath-hold capabilities of marine mammals are facilitated by both enhanced O2 stores and reductions in the rate of O2 consumption via peripheral vasoconstriction and bradycardia, called the dive response. Many studies have focused on the extreme role of the dive response in maximizing dive duration in marine mammals, but few have addressed how these adjustments may compromise the capability to hunt, digest and thermoregulate during routine dives. Here, we use DTAGs, which record heart rate together with foraging and movement behaviour, to investigate how O2 management is balanced between the need to dive and forage in five wild harbour porpoises that hunt thousands of small prey daily during continuous shallow diving. Dive heart rates were moderate (median minimum 47-69 bpm) and relatively stable across dive types, dive duration (0.5-3.3 min) and activity. A moderate dive response, allowing for some perfusion of peripheral tissues, may be essential for fuelling the high field metabolic rates required to maintain body temperature and support digestion during diving in these small, continuously feeding cetaceans. Thus, despite having the capacity to prolong dives via a strong dive response, for these shallow-diving cetaceans, it appears to be more efficient to maintain circulation while diving: extreme heart rate gymnastics are for deep dives and emergencies, not everyday use.
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Affiliation(s)
- Birgitte I. McDonald
- Moss Landing Marine Laboratories, San Jose State University, Moss Landing, CA 93933, USA
| | - Siri L. Elmegaard
- Zoophysiology, Department of Biology, Aarhus University, 8000 Aarhus, Denmark,Marine Mammal Research, Bioscience to Ecoscience, Aarhus University, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Mark Johnson
- Aarhus Institute of Advanced Studies, Aarhus University, 8000 Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Danuta M. Wisniewska
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, UMR7372 CNRS-Université La Rochelle, 79360 Villiers en Bois, France
| | - Laia Rojano-Doñate
- Zoophysiology, Department of Biology, Aarhus University, 8000 Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Anders Galatius
- Marine Mammal Research, Bioscience to Ecoscience, Aarhus University, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Ursula Siebert
- Institute for Terrestrial and Aquatic Wildlife Research, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, 25761 Büsum, Germany
| | - Jonas Teilmann
- Marine Mammal Research, Bioscience to Ecoscience, Aarhus University, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Peter T. Madsen
- Zoophysiology, Department of Biology, Aarhus University, 8000 Aarhus, Denmark
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8
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Elmegaard SL, McDonald BI, Teilmann J, Madsen PT. Heart rate and startle responses in diving, captive harbour porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) exposed to transient noise and sonar. Biol Open 2021; 10:bio058679. [PMID: 34133736 PMCID: PMC8249908 DOI: 10.1242/bio.058679] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2021] [Accepted: 05/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Anthropogenic noise can alter marine mammal behaviour and physiology, but little is known about cetacean cardiovascular responses to exposures, despite evidence that acoustic stressors, such as naval sonars, may lead to decompression sickness. Here, we measured heart rate and movements of two trained harbour porpoises during controlled exposure to 6-9 kHz sonar-like sweeps and 40 kHz peak-frequency noise pulses, designed to evoke acoustic startle responses. The porpoises initially responded to the sonar sweep with intensified bradycardia despite unaltered behaviour/movement, but habituated rapidly to the stimuli. In contrast, 40 kHz noise pulses consistently evoked rapid muscle flinches (indicative of startles), but no behavioural or heart rate changes. We conclude that the autonomous startle response appears decoupled from, or overridden by, cardiac regulation in diving porpoises, whereas certain novel stimuli may motivate oxygen-conserving cardiovascular measures. Such responses to sound exposure may contribute to gas mismanagement for deeper-diving cetaceans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Siri L. Elmegaard
- Zoophysiology, Department of Biology, Aarhus University, 8000 Aarhus, Denmark
- Marine Mammal Research, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Birgitte I. McDonald
- Moss Landing Marine Laboratories, San Jose State University, Moss Landing, CA 95039-9647, USA
| | - Jonas Teilmann
- Marine Mammal Research, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Peter T. Madsen
- Zoophysiology, Department of Biology, Aarhus University, 8000 Aarhus, Denmark
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9
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Fahlman A, Aoki K, Bale G, Brijs J, Chon KH, Drummond CK, Føre M, Manteca X, McDonald BI, McKnight JC, Sakamoto KQ, Suzuki I, Rivero MJ, Ropert-Coudert Y, Wisniewska DM. The New Era of Physio-Logging and Their Grand Challenges. Front Physiol 2021; 12:669158. [PMID: 33859577 PMCID: PMC8042203 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2021.669158] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2021] [Accepted: 02/26/2021] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Andreas Fahlman
- Fundación Oceanográfic de la Comunitat Valenciana, Valencia, Spain
| | - Kagari Aoki
- Department of Marine Bioscience, Atmosphere and Ocean Research Institute, The University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Japan
| | - Gemma Bale
- Department of Physics and Department of Engineering, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Jeroen Brijs
- Hawai'i Institute of Marine Biology, University of Hawai'i at Manoa, Manoa, HI, United States
| | - Ki H. Chon
- Biomedical Engineering, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, United States
| | - Colin K. Drummond
- Biomedical Engineering, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, United States
| | - Martin Føre
- Department of Engineering Cybernetics, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
| | - Xavier Manteca
- Department of Animal and Food Science, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Birgitte I. McDonald
- Moss Landing Marine Labs at San Jose State University, Moss Landing, CA, United States
| | - J. Chris McKnight
- Sea Mammal Research Unit, University of St. Andrews, Scotland, United Kingdom
| | - Kentaro Q. Sakamoto
- Department of Marine Bioscience, Atmosphere and Ocean Research Institute, The University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Japan
| | - Ippei Suzuki
- Akkeshi Marine Station, Field Science Center for Northern Biosphere, Hokkaido University, Akkeshi, Japan
| | | | - Yan Ropert-Coudert
- Centre D'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, La Rochelle Université, UMR7372, CNRS, France
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10
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Kooyman GL, McDonald BI, Williams CL, Meir JU, Ponganis PJ. The aerobic dive limit: After 40 years, still rarely measured but commonly used. Comp Biochem Physiol A Mol Integr Physiol 2020; 252:110841. [PMID: 33186706 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2020.110841] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2020] [Revised: 11/04/2020] [Accepted: 11/04/2020] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
The aerobic dive limit (ADL) and the hypothesis that most dives are aerobic in nature have become fundamental to the understanding of diving physiology and to the interpretation of diving behavior and foraging ecology of marine mammals and seabirds. An ADL, the dive duration associated with the onset of post-dive blood lactate accumulation, has only been documented with blood lactate analyses in five species. Applications to other species have involved behavioral estimates or use of an oxygen store / metabolic rate formula. Both approaches have limitations, but have proved useful to the evaluation of the dive behavior and ecology of many species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gerald L Kooyman
- Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA
| | - Birgitte I McDonald
- Moss Landing Marine Laboratories, California State University, 8272 Moss Landing Road, Moss Landing, CA 95039, USA
| | - Cassondra L Williams
- National Marine Mammal Foundation, 2240 Shelter Island Drive, #200, San Diego, CA 92106, USA
| | | | - Paul J Ponganis
- Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA.
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11
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Hindell MA, Reisinger RR, Ropert-Coudert Y, Hückstädt LA, Trathan PN, Bornemann H, Charrassin JB, Chown SL, Costa DP, Danis B, Lea MA, Thompson D, Torres LG, Van de Putte AP, Alderman R, Andrews-Goff V, Arthur B, Ballard G, Bengtson J, Bester MN, Blix AS, Boehme L, Bost CA, Boveng P, Cleeland J, Constantine R, Corney S, Crawford RJM, Dalla Rosa L, de Bruyn PJN, Delord K, Descamps S, Double M, Emmerson L, Fedak M, Friedlaender A, Gales N, Goebel ME, Goetz KT, Guinet C, Goldsworthy SD, Harcourt R, Hinke JT, Jerosch K, Kato A, Kerry KR, Kirkwood R, Kooyman GL, Kovacs KM, Lawton K, Lowther AD, Lydersen C, Lyver PO, Makhado AB, Márquez MEI, McDonald BI, McMahon CR, Muelbert M, Nachtsheim D, Nicholls KW, Nordøy ES, Olmastroni S, Phillips RA, Pistorius P, Plötz J, Pütz K, Ratcliffe N, Ryan PG, Santos M, Southwell C, Staniland I, Takahashi A, Tarroux A, Trivelpiece W, Wakefield E, Weimerskirch H, Wienecke B, Xavier JC, Wotherspoon S, Jonsen ID, Raymond B. Tracking of marine predators to protect Southern Ocean ecosystems. Nature 2020; 580:87-92. [PMID: 32238927 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-020-2126-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 110] [Impact Index Per Article: 27.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2018] [Accepted: 02/20/2020] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
Southern Ocean ecosystems are under pressure from resource exploitation and climate change1,2. Mitigation requires the identification and protection of Areas of Ecological Significance (AESs), which have so far not been determined at the ocean-basin scale. Here, using assemblage-level tracking of marine predators, we identify AESs for this globally important region and assess current threats and protection levels. Integration of more than 4,000 tracks from 17 bird and mammal species reveals AESs around sub-Antarctic islands in the Atlantic and Indian Oceans and over the Antarctic continental shelf. Fishing pressure is disproportionately concentrated inside AESs, and climate change over the next century is predicted to impose pressure on these areas, particularly around the Antarctic continent. At present, 7.1% of the ocean south of 40°S is under formal protection, including 29% of the total AESs. The establishment and regular revision of networks of protection that encompass AESs are needed to provide long-term mitigation of growing pressures on Southern Ocean ecosystems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mark A Hindell
- Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. .,Antarctic Climate and Ecosystems Cooperative Research Centre, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.
| | - Ryan R Reisinger
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, Station d'Écologie de Chizé-La Rochelle Université, CNRS UMR7372, Villiers-en-Bois, France.,CESAB-FRB, Institut Bouisson Bertrand, Montpellier, France.,LOCEAN/IPSL, Sorbonne Université-CNRS-IRD-MNHN, UMR7159, Paris, France
| | - Yan Ropert-Coudert
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, Station d'Écologie de Chizé-La Rochelle Université, CNRS UMR7372, Villiers-en-Bois, France
| | - Luis A Hückstädt
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Philip N Trathan
- British Antarctic Survey, Natural Environment Research Council, Cambridge, UK
| | - Horst Bornemann
- Alfred-Wegener-Institut Helmholtz-Zentrum für Polar- und Meeresforschung, Bremerhaven, Germany
| | | | - Steven L Chown
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Daniel P Costa
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Bruno Danis
- Marine Biology Laboratory, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Mary-Anne Lea
- Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.,Antarctic Climate and Ecosystems Cooperative Research Centre, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia
| | - David Thompson
- National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research, Wellington, New Zealand
| | - Leigh G Torres
- Marine Mammal Institute, Oregon State University, Newport, OR, USA
| | - Anton P Van de Putte
- BEDIC, OD Nature, Royal Belgian Institute for Natural Sciences, Brussels, Belgium.,Laboratory of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Genomics, Department of Biology, University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Rachael Alderman
- Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia
| | - Virginia Andrews-Goff
- Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.,Australian Antarctic Division, Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment, Kingston, Tasmania, Australia
| | - Ben Arthur
- Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia
| | | | - John Bengtson
- Marine Mammal Laboratory, Alaska Fisheries Science Center, NOAA Fisheries, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Marthán N Bester
- Mammal Research Institute, Department of Zoology and Entomology, University of Pretoria, Hatfield, South Africa
| | | | | | - Charles-André Bost
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, Station d'Écologie de Chizé-La Rochelle Université, CNRS UMR7372, Villiers-en-Bois, France
| | - Peter Boveng
- Marine Mammal Laboratory, Alaska Fisheries Science Center, NOAA Fisheries, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Jaimie Cleeland
- Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia
| | | | - Stuart Corney
- Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia
| | - Robert J M Crawford
- Oceans and Coasts, Department of Environment, Agriculture and Fisheries, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Luciano Dalla Rosa
- Instituto de Oceanografia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande, Rio Grande, Brazil
| | - P J Nico de Bruyn
- Mammal Research Institute, Department of Zoology and Entomology, University of Pretoria, Hatfield, South Africa
| | - Karine Delord
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, Station d'Écologie de Chizé-La Rochelle Université, CNRS UMR7372, Villiers-en-Bois, France
| | | | - Mike Double
- Australian Antarctic Division, Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment, Kingston, Tasmania, Australia
| | - Louise Emmerson
- Australian Antarctic Division, Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment, Kingston, Tasmania, Australia
| | - Mike Fedak
- Scottish Oceans Institute, St Andrews, UK
| | - Ari Friedlaender
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA.,Institute of Marine Sciences, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Nick Gales
- Australian Antarctic Division, Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment, Kingston, Tasmania, Australia
| | - Michael E Goebel
- Institute of Marine Sciences, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Kimberly T Goetz
- National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research, Wellington, New Zealand
| | - Christophe Guinet
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, Station d'Écologie de Chizé-La Rochelle Université, CNRS UMR7372, Villiers-en-Bois, France
| | - Simon D Goldsworthy
- South Australian Research and Development Institute, West Beach, South Australia, Australia
| | - Rob Harcourt
- Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Jefferson T Hinke
- Antarctic Ecosystems Research Division, Southwest Fisheries Science Center, NOAA Fisheries, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Kerstin Jerosch
- Alfred-Wegener-Institut Helmholtz-Zentrum für Polar- und Meeresforschung, Bremerhaven, Germany
| | - Akiko Kato
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, Station d'Écologie de Chizé-La Rochelle Université, CNRS UMR7372, Villiers-en-Bois, France
| | - Knowles R Kerry
- Australian Antarctic Division, Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment, Kingston, Tasmania, Australia
| | - Roger Kirkwood
- Australian Antarctic Division, Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment, Kingston, Tasmania, Australia
| | - Gerald L Kooyman
- Center for Marine Biotechnology and Biomedicine, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Kit M Kovacs
- Norwegian Polar Institute, Fram Centre, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Kieran Lawton
- Australian Antarctic Division, Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment, Kingston, Tasmania, Australia
| | | | | | | | - Azwianewi B Makhado
- Oceans and Coasts, Department of Environment, Agriculture and Fisheries, Cape Town, South Africa
| | | | - Birgitte I McDonald
- Moss Landing Marine Laboratories, San José State University, Moss Landing, CA, USA
| | - Clive R McMahon
- Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.,Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.,Sydney Institute of Marine Science, Mosman, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Monica Muelbert
- Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.,Instituto de Oceanografia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande, Rio Grande, Brazil
| | - Dominik Nachtsheim
- Alfred-Wegener-Institut Helmholtz-Zentrum für Polar- und Meeresforschung, Bremerhaven, Germany.,Institute for Terrestrial and Aquatic Wildlife Research, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Büsum, Germany
| | - Keith W Nicholls
- British Antarctic Survey, Natural Environment Research Council, Cambridge, UK
| | | | - Silvia Olmastroni
- Dipartimento di Scienze Fisiche, della Terra e dell'Ambiente, Università di Siena, Siena, Italy.,Museo Nazionale dell'Antartide, Siena, Italy
| | - Richard A Phillips
- British Antarctic Survey, Natural Environment Research Council, Cambridge, UK
| | - Pierre Pistorius
- DST-NRF Centre of Excellence at the FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, Nelson Mandela University, Port Elizabeth, South Africa
| | - Joachim Plötz
- Alfred-Wegener-Institut Helmholtz-Zentrum für Polar- und Meeresforschung, Bremerhaven, Germany
| | | | - Norman Ratcliffe
- British Antarctic Survey, Natural Environment Research Council, Cambridge, UK
| | - Peter G Ryan
- DST-NRF Centre of Excellence at the FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa
| | | | - Colin Southwell
- Australian Antarctic Division, Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment, Kingston, Tasmania, Australia
| | - Iain Staniland
- British Antarctic Survey, Natural Environment Research Council, Cambridge, UK
| | | | - Arnaud Tarroux
- Norwegian Polar Institute, Fram Centre, Tromsø, Norway.,Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Fram Centre, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Wayne Trivelpiece
- Antarctic Ecosystems Research Division, Southwest Fisheries Science Center, NOAA Fisheries, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Ewan Wakefield
- Institute of Biodiversity, Animal Health and Comparative Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
| | - Henri Weimerskirch
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, Station d'Écologie de Chizé-La Rochelle Université, CNRS UMR7372, Villiers-en-Bois, France
| | - Barbara Wienecke
- Australian Antarctic Division, Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment, Kingston, Tasmania, Australia
| | - José C Xavier
- British Antarctic Survey, Natural Environment Research Council, Cambridge, UK.,Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal
| | - Simon Wotherspoon
- Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.,Australian Antarctic Division, Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment, Kingston, Tasmania, Australia
| | - Ian D Jonsen
- Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Ben Raymond
- Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.,Antarctic Climate and Ecosystems Cooperative Research Centre, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.,Australian Antarctic Division, Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment, Kingston, Tasmania, Australia
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12
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Ropert-Coudert Y, Van de Putte AP, Reisinger RR, Bornemann H, Charrassin JB, Costa DP, Danis B, Hückstädt LA, Jonsen ID, Lea MA, Thompson D, Torres LG, Trathan PN, Wotherspoon S, Ainley DG, Alderman R, Andrews-Goff V, Arthur B, Ballard G, Bengtson J, Bester MN, Blix AS, Boehme L, Bost CA, Boveng P, Cleeland J, Constantine R, Crawford RJM, Dalla Rosa L, Nico de Bruyn PJ, Delord K, Descamps S, Double M, Emmerson L, Fedak M, Friedlaender A, Gales N, Goebel M, Goetz KT, Guinet C, Goldsworthy SD, Harcourt R, Hinke JT, Jerosch K, Kato A, Kerry KR, Kirkwood R, Kooyman GL, Kovacs KM, Lawton K, Lowther AD, Lydersen C, Lyver PO, Makhado AB, Márquez MEI, McDonald BI, McMahon CR, Muelbert M, Nachtsheim D, Nicholls KW, Nordøy ES, Olmastroni S, Phillips RA, Pistorius P, Plötz J, Pütz K, Ratcliffe N, Ryan PG, Santos M, Southwell C, Staniland I, Takahashi A, Tarroux A, Trivelpiece W, Wakefield E, Weimerskirch H, Wienecke B, Xavier JC, Raymond B, Hindell MA. The retrospective analysis of Antarctic tracking data project. Sci Data 2020; 7:94. [PMID: 32188863 PMCID: PMC7080749 DOI: 10.1038/s41597-020-0406-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2018] [Accepted: 10/12/2018] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
The Retrospective Analysis of Antarctic Tracking Data (RAATD) is a Scientific Committee for Antarctic Research project led jointly by the Expert Groups on Birds and Marine Mammals and Antarctic Biodiversity Informatics, and endorsed by the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources. RAATD consolidated tracking data for multiple species of Antarctic meso- and top-predators to identify Areas of Ecological Significance. These datasets and accompanying syntheses provide a greater understanding of fundamental ecosystem processes in the Southern Ocean, support modelling of predator distributions under future climate scenarios and create inputs that can be incorporated into decision making processes by management authorities. In this data paper, we present the compiled tracking data from research groups that have worked in the Antarctic since the 1990s. The data are publicly available through biodiversity.aq and the Ocean Biogeographic Information System. The archive includes tracking data from over 70 contributors across 12 national Antarctic programs, and includes data from 17 predator species, 4060 individual animals, and over 2.9 million observed locations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yan Ropert-Coudert
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, Station d'Écologie de Chizé- La Rochelle Université, CNRS UMR7372, 79360, Villiers-en-Bois, France.
| | - Anton P Van de Putte
- BEDIC, OD Nature, Royal Belgian Institute for Natural Sciences, Vautierstraat 29, B-1000, Brussels, Belgium.
- Laboratory of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Genomics, Department of Biology, University of Leuven, Ch. Deberiotstraat 32, B-3000, Leuven, Belgium.
| | - Ryan R Reisinger
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, Station d'Écologie de Chizé- La Rochelle Université, CNRS UMR7372, 79360, Villiers-en-Bois, France.
- DST-NRF Centre of Excellence at the Percy FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, Nelson Mandela University, PO Box 77000, Port Elizabeth, 6031, South Africa.
- CESAB - FRB, 5, rue de l'École de médecine, 34000, Montpellier, France.
| | - Horst Bornemann
- Alfred-Wegener-Institut Helmholtz-Zentrum für Polar- und Meeresforschung, Am Handelshafen 12, 27570, Bremerhaven, Germany
| | - Jean-Benoît Charrassin
- Sorbonne Universités, UPMC University, Paris 06, UMR 7159 CNRS-IRD-MNHN, LOCEAN-IPSL, 75005, Paris, France
| | - Daniel P Costa
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Long Marine Lab, 130 McAllister Way, Santa Cruz, CA, 95060, USA
| | - Bruno Danis
- Université Libre de Bruxelles, Marine Biology Lab, Campus du Solbosch - CP160/15 50 avenue F.D. Roosevelt, 1050, Bruxelles, Belgium
| | - Luis A Hückstädt
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Long Marine Lab, 130 McAllister Way, Santa Cruz, CA, 95060, USA
| | - Ian D Jonsen
- Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW, 2109, Australia
| | - Mary-Anne Lea
- Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, 20 Castray Esplanade, Battery Point, TAS, 7004, Australia
- Antarctic Climate and Ecosystems Cooperative Research Centre, University of Tasmania, TAS 7004, Hobart, Australia
| | - David Thompson
- National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research Ltd, 301 Evans Bay Parade, Wellington, 6021, New Zealand
| | - Leigh G Torres
- Hatfield Marine Science Center, 2030 SE Marine Science Drive, Newport, OR, 97365, USA
| | - Philip N Trathan
- British Antarctic Survey, Natural Environment Research Council, High Cross, Madingley Road, Cambridge, CB3 0ET, United Kingdom
| | - Simon Wotherspoon
- Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, 20 Castray Esplanade, Battery Point, TAS, 7004, Australia
| | - David G Ainley
- H.T. Harvey & Associates, 983 University Avenue, Bldg D, Los Gatos, CA, 95032, USA
| | - Rachael Alderman
- Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment, Hobart, TAS, 7000, Australia
| | - Virginia Andrews-Goff
- Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, 20 Castray Esplanade, Battery Point, TAS, 7004, Australia
- Australian Antarctic Division, Department of the Environment and Energy, 203 Channel Hwy, Kingston, TAS, 7050, Australia
| | - Ben Arthur
- Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, 20 Castray Esplanade, Battery Point, TAS, 7004, Australia
| | - Grant Ballard
- Point Blue Conservation Science, 3820 Cypress Drive, Suite 11, Petaluma, CA, 94954, USA
| | - John Bengtson
- Marine Mammal Laboratory, Alaska Fisheries Science Center/NOAA, 7600 Sand Point Way N.E., F/AKC3, Seattle, WA, 98115-6349, USA
| | - Marthán N Bester
- Mammal Research Institute, Department of Zoology and Entomology, University of Pretoria, Private Bag X20, Hatfield, 0028, South Africa
| | | | - Lars Boehme
- Scottish Oceans Institute, East Sands, St Andrews, Fife, United Kingdom
| | - Charles-André Bost
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, Station d'Écologie de Chizé- La Rochelle Université, CNRS UMR7372, 79360, Villiers-en-Bois, France
| | - Peter Boveng
- Marine Mammal Laboratory, Alaska Fisheries Science Center/NOAA, 7600 Sand Point Way N.E., F/AKC3, Seattle, WA, 98115-6349, USA
| | - Jaimie Cleeland
- Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, 20 Castray Esplanade, Battery Point, TAS, 7004, Australia
| | - Rochelle Constantine
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland Private Bag 92019, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Robert J M Crawford
- Oceans and Coasts, Department of Environmental Affairs, Private Bag X2, Rogge Bay, 8012, South Africa
| | - Luciano Dalla Rosa
- Instituto de Oceanografia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande - FURG, Av. Itália km 8 s/n, Campus Carreiros, Rio Grande, RS, 96203-000, Brazil
| | - P J Nico de Bruyn
- Mammal Research Institute, Department of Zoology and Entomology, University of Pretoria, Private Bag X20, Hatfield, 0028, South Africa
| | - Karine Delord
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, Station d'Écologie de Chizé- La Rochelle Université, CNRS UMR7372, 79360, Villiers-en-Bois, France
| | | | - Mike Double
- Australian Antarctic Division, Department of the Environment and Energy, 203 Channel Hwy, Kingston, TAS, 7050, Australia
| | - Louise Emmerson
- Australian Antarctic Division, Department of the Environment and Energy, 203 Channel Hwy, Kingston, TAS, 7050, Australia
| | - Mike Fedak
- Scottish Oceans Institute, East Sands, St Andrews, Fife, United Kingdom
| | - Ari Friedlaender
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Long Marine Lab, 130 McAllister Way, Santa Cruz, CA, 95060, USA
- Institute of Marine Sciences, University of California Santa Cruz, 1156 High Street, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064, USA
| | - Nick Gales
- Australian Antarctic Division, Department of the Environment and Energy, 203 Channel Hwy, Kingston, TAS, 7050, Australia
| | - Mike Goebel
- Antarctic Ecosystem Research Division, Southwest Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries, Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, La Jolla, California, USA
| | - Kimberly T Goetz
- National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research Ltd, 301 Evans Bay Parade, Wellington, 6021, New Zealand
| | - Christophe Guinet
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, Station d'Écologie de Chizé- La Rochelle Université, CNRS UMR7372, 79360, Villiers-en-Bois, France
| | - Simon D Goldsworthy
- South Australian Research and Development Institute, 2 Hamra Avenue, West Beach, SA, 5024, Australia
| | - Rob Harcourt
- Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW, 2109, Australia
| | - Jefferson T Hinke
- Antarctic Ecosystem Research Division, Southwest Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries, Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, La Jolla, California, USA
| | - Kerstin Jerosch
- Alfred-Wegener-Institut Helmholtz-Zentrum für Polar- und Meeresforschung, Am Handelshafen 12, 27570, Bremerhaven, Germany
| | - Akiko Kato
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, Station d'Écologie de Chizé- La Rochelle Université, CNRS UMR7372, 79360, Villiers-en-Bois, France
| | - Knowles R Kerry
- Australian Antarctic Division, Department of the Environment and Energy, 203 Channel Hwy, Kingston, TAS, 7050, Australia
| | - Roger Kirkwood
- Australian Antarctic Division, Department of the Environment and Energy, 203 Channel Hwy, Kingston, TAS, 7050, Australia
| | - Gerald L Kooyman
- Center for Marine Biology & Biomedicine, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego, La Jolla, CA, 92093, USA
| | - Kit M Kovacs
- Norwegian Polar Institute, Fram Centre, 9296, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Kieran Lawton
- Australian Antarctic Division, Department of the Environment and Energy, 203 Channel Hwy, Kingston, TAS, 7050, Australia
| | | | | | - Phil O'B Lyver
- Landcare Research, Lincoln, P.O. Box 69040, Lincoln, 7640, New Zealand
| | - Azwianewi B Makhado
- Oceans and Coasts, Department of Environmental Affairs, Private Bag X2, Rogge Bay, 8012, South Africa
| | - Maria E I Márquez
- Instituto Antártico Argentino, 25 de Mayo, 1143, San Martín, Provincia de Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Birgitte I McDonald
- Moss Landing Marine Laboratories, San José State University, 8272 Moss Landing Rd, Moss Landing, CA, 95039, USA
| | - Clive R McMahon
- Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW, 2109, Australia
- Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, 20 Castray Esplanade, Battery Point, TAS, 7004, Australia
- Sydney Institute of Marine Science, 19 Chowder Bay Road, Mosman, NSW, 2088, Australia
| | - Monica Muelbert
- Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, 20 Castray Esplanade, Battery Point, TAS, 7004, Australia
- Instituto de Oceanografia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande - FURG, Av. Itália km 8 s/n, Campus Carreiros, Rio Grande, RS, 96203-000, Brazil
| | - Dominik Nachtsheim
- Alfred-Wegener-Institut Helmholtz-Zentrum für Polar- und Meeresforschung, Am Handelshafen 12, 27570, Bremerhaven, Germany
- Institute for Terrestrial and Aquatic Wildlife Research, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Werftstraße 6, 25761, Büsum, Germany
| | - Keith W Nicholls
- British Antarctic Survey, Natural Environment Research Council, High Cross, Madingley Road, Cambridge, CB3 0ET, United Kingdom
| | - Erling S Nordøy
- UiT The Arctic University of Norway, PO Box 6050 Langnes, 9037, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Silvia Olmastroni
- Dipartimento di Scienze Fisiche, della Terra e dell'Ambiente, Università di Siena, Via Mattioli 4, 53100, Siena, Italy
- Museo Nazionale dell'Antartide, Via Laterina 8, 53100, Siena, Italy
| | - Richard A Phillips
- British Antarctic Survey, Natural Environment Research Council, High Cross, Madingley Road, Cambridge, CB3 0ET, United Kingdom
| | - Pierre Pistorius
- DST-NRF Centre of Excellence at the Percy FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, Nelson Mandela University, PO Box 77000, Port Elizabeth, 6031, South Africa
| | - Joachim Plötz
- Alfred-Wegener-Institut Helmholtz-Zentrum für Polar- und Meeresforschung, Am Handelshafen 12, 27570, Bremerhaven, Germany
| | - Klemens Pütz
- Antarctic Research Trust, Am Oste-Hamme-Kanal 10, D-27432, Bremervörde, Germany
| | - Norman Ratcliffe
- British Antarctic Survey, Natural Environment Research Council, High Cross, Madingley Road, Cambridge, CB3 0ET, United Kingdom
| | - Peter G Ryan
- Percy FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, DST-NRF Centre of Excellence, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, 7701, South Africa
| | - Mercedes Santos
- Instituto Antártico Argentino, 25 de Mayo, 1143, San Martín, Provincia de Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Colin Southwell
- Australian Antarctic Division, Department of the Environment and Energy, 203 Channel Hwy, Kingston, TAS, 7050, Australia
| | - Iain Staniland
- British Antarctic Survey, Natural Environment Research Council, High Cross, Madingley Road, Cambridge, CB3 0ET, United Kingdom
| | - Akinori Takahashi
- National Institute of Polar Research, 10-3, Midori-cho, Tachikawa, Tokyo, 190-8518, Japan
| | - Arnaud Tarroux
- Norwegian Polar Institute, Fram Centre, 9296, Tromsø, Norway
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Fram Centre, Postbox 6606 Langnes, 9296, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Wayne Trivelpiece
- Antarctic Ecosystem Research Division, Southwest Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries, Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, La Jolla, California, USA
| | - Ewan Wakefield
- Institute of Biodiversity Animal Health and Comparative Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, G12 8QQ, United Kingdom
| | - Henri Weimerskirch
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, Station d'Écologie de Chizé- La Rochelle Université, CNRS UMR7372, 79360, Villiers-en-Bois, France
| | - Barbara Wienecke
- Australian Antarctic Division, Department of the Environment and Energy, 203 Channel Hwy, Kingston, TAS, 7050, Australia
| | - José C Xavier
- British Antarctic Survey, Natural Environment Research Council, High Cross, Madingley Road, Cambridge, CB3 0ET, United Kingdom
- Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra, 3004-517, Coimbra, Portugal
| | - Ben Raymond
- Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, 20 Castray Esplanade, Battery Point, TAS, 7004, Australia.
- Antarctic Climate and Ecosystems Cooperative Research Centre, University of Tasmania, TAS 7004, Hobart, Australia.
- Australian Antarctic Division, Department of the Environment and Energy, 203 Channel Hwy, Kingston, TAS, 7050, Australia.
| | - Mark A Hindell
- Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, 20 Castray Esplanade, Battery Point, TAS, 7004, Australia.
- Antarctic Climate and Ecosystems Cooperative Research Centre, University of Tasmania, TAS 7004, Hobart, Australia.
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13
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McDonald BI, Tift MS, Hückstädt LA, Jeffko M, Ponganis PJ. Stroke effort and relative lung volume influence heart rate in diving sea lions. J Exp Biol 2020; 223:jeb214163. [PMID: 32098880 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.214163] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/10/2019] [Accepted: 02/10/2020] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
The dive response, bradycardia (decreased heart rate) and peripheral vasoconstriction, is the key mechanism allowing breath-hold divers to perform long-duration dives while actively swimming and hunting prey. This response is variable and modulated by factors such as dive duration, depth, exercise and cognitive control. This study assessed the potential role of exercise and relative lung volume in the regulation of heart rate (fH) during dives of adult female California sea lions instrumented with electrocardiogram (ECG), depth and tri-axial acceleration data loggers. A positive relationship between activity (minimum specific acceleration) and fH throughout dives suggested increased muscle perfusion associated with exercise. However, apart from late ascent, fH during dives was still less than or equal to resting fH (on land). In addition, the activity-fH relationship was weaker in long, deep dives consistent with prioritization of blood oxygen conservation over blood oxygen delivery to muscle in those dives. Pulmonary stretch receptor reflexes may also contribute to fH regulation as fH profiles generally paralleled changes in relative lung volume, especially in shallower dives and during early descent and late ascent of deeper dives. Overall, these findings support the concept that both exercise and pulmonary stretch receptor reflexes may influence the dive response in sea lions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Birgitte I McDonald
- Moss Landing Marine Laboratories, San Jose State University, 8272 Moss Landing Rd, Moss Landing, CA 95039, USA
| | - Michael S Tift
- Department of Biology and Marine Biology, University of North Carolina Wilmington, 601 S. College Rd, Wilmington, NC 28403, USA
| | - Luis A Hückstädt
- Institute of Marine Sciences, University of California Santa Cruz, 115 McAllister Way, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, USA
| | - Michael Jeffko
- United States Coast Guard Academy, 27 Mohegan Way, New London, CT 06320, USA
| | - Paul J Ponganis
- Scripps Institution of Oceanography - University of California San Diego, Center for Marine Biodiversity and Biomedicine, 8655 Kennel Way, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
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14
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Hooper AW, Berger RW, Rubin LS, McDonald BI, Crocker DE. Maternal age influences offspring behaviour and growth efficiency during provisioning in northern elephant seals. Anim Behav 2019. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2019.03.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
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15
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Rojano-Doñate L, McDonald BI, Wisniewska DM, Johnson M, Teilmann J, Wahlberg M, Højer-Kristensen J, Madsen PT. High field metabolic rates of wild harbour porpoises. J Exp Biol 2018; 221:221/23/jeb185827. [DOI: 10.1242/jeb.185827] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2018] [Accepted: 10/01/2018] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
ABSTRACT
Reliable estimates of field metabolic rates (FMRs) in wild animals are essential for quantifying their ecological roles, as well as for evaluating fitness consequences of anthropogenic disturbances. Yet, standard methods for measuring FMR are difficult to use on free-ranging cetaceans whose FMR may deviate substantially from scaling predictions using terrestrial mammals. Harbour porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) are among the smallest marine mammals, and yet they live in cold, high-latitude waters where their high surface-to-volume ratio suggests high FMRs to stay warm. However, published FMR estimates of harbour porpoises are contradictory, with some studies claiming high FMRs and others concluding that the energetic requirements of porpoises resemble those of similar-sized terrestrial mammals. Here, we address this controversy using data from a combination of captive and wild porpoises to estimate the FMR of wild porpoises. We show that FMRs of harbour porpoises are up to two times greater than for similar-sized terrestrial mammals, supporting the hypothesis that small, carnivorous marine mammals in cold water have elevated FMRs. Despite the potential cost of thermoregulation in colder water, harbour porpoise FMRs are stable over seasonally changing water temperatures. Varying heat loss seems to be managed via cyclical fluctuations in energy intake, which serve to build up a blubber layer that largely offsets the extra costs of thermoregulation during winter. Such high FMRs are consistent with the recently reported high feeding rates of wild porpoises and highlight concerns about the potential impact of human activities on individual fitness and population dynamics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laia Rojano-Doñate
- Zoophysiology, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, 8000 Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Birgitte I. McDonald
- Moss Landing Marine Laboratories, California State University, Moss Landing, CA 95039-9647, USA
| | | | - Mark Johnson
- Sea Mammal Research Unit, University of St Andrews, St Andrews KY16 8LB, UK
| | - Jonas Teilmann
- Marine Mammal Research, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Magnus Wahlberg
- Marine Biological Research Center, Department of Biology, University of Southern Denmark, 5300 Kerteminde, Denmark
- Fjord&Bælt, 5300 Kerteminde, Denmark
| | | | - Peter T. Madsen
- Zoophysiology, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, 8000 Aarhus, Denmark
- Aarhus Institute of Advanced Studies, Aarhus University, 8000 Aarhus, Denmark
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16
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Abstract
Marine mammals have adapted to forage while holding their breath in a suite of aquatic habitats from shallow rivers to deep oceans. The key to tolerate such extensive apnea is the dive response, which comprises bradycardia and peripheral vasoconstriction. Although initially considered an all-or-nothing reflex [1], numerous studies on freely diving marine mammals have revealed substantial dynamics of the dive response to meet the impending dive demands of depth, duration and exercise [2]. Such adjustments are not only autonomic responses, but are under acute cognitive control in pinnipeds [3] living amphibiously on land and in water. The fully aquatic cetaceans would similarly benefit from cognitive cardiovascular control; however, even though they have exercise-modulated diving bradycardia [2] and full voluntary control of their respiratory system to such extent that even mild anesthesia often leads to asphyxiation [4], cognitive cardiovascular control has never been demonstrated for this large group of marine mammals. To address this, we tested the hypothesis that porpoises modulate bradycardia according to anticipated dive duration. Two harbor porpoises, instrumented with ECG recording tags, were trained to perform 20- and 80-second stationary dives, during which they adjusted bradycardia to the anticipated duration, demonstrating cognitive control of their dive response.
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Affiliation(s)
- Siri L Elmegaard
- Zoophysiology, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark.
| | - Mark Johnson
- Scottish Oceans Institute, University of St. Andrews, St. Andrews KY16 8LB, Scotland, UK
| | - Peter T Madsen
- Zoophysiology, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark; Murdoch University Cetacean Research Unit, School of Veterinary and Life Sciences, Murdoch University, Perth, WA 6150, Australia
| | - Birgitte I McDonald
- Zoophysiology, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark; Moss Landing Marine Laboratories, California State University, Moss Landing, CA 95039-9647, USA
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McDonald BI, Johnson M, Madsen PT. Dive heart rate in harbour porpoises is influenced by exercise and expectations. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2018; 221:jeb.168740. [PMID: 29122951 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.168740] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2017] [Accepted: 11/06/2017] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
The dive response, a decrease in heart rate (fH) and peripheral vasoconstriction, is the key mechanism allowing breath-hold divers to perform long-duration dives. This pronounced cardiovascular response to diving has been investigated intensely in pinnipeds, but comparatively little is known for cetaceans, in particular in ecologically relevant settings. Here, we studied the dive fH response in one of the smallest cetaceans, the harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena). We used a novel multi-sensor data logger to record dive behaviour, fH, ventilations and feeding events in three trained porpoises, providing the first evaluation of cetacean fH regulation while performing a variety of natural behaviours, including prey capture. We predicted that tagged harbour porpoises would exhibit a decrease in fH in all dives, but the degree of bradycardia would be influenced by dive duration and activity, i.e. the dive fH response would be exercise modulated. In all dives, fH decreased compared with surface rates by at least 50% (mean maximum surface fH=173 beats min-1, mean minimum dive fH=50 beats min-1); however, dive fH was approximately 10 beats min-1 higher in active dives as a result of a slower decrease in fH and more variable fH during pursuit of prey. We show that porpoises exhibit the typical breath-hold diver bradycardia during aerobic dives and that the fH response is modulated by exercise and dive duration; however, other variables such as expectations and individual differences are equally important in determining diving fH.
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Affiliation(s)
- Birgitte I McDonald
- Moss Landing Marine Laboratories, California State University, 8272 Moss Landing Road, Moss Landing, CA 95039, USA .,Zoophysiology, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark
| | - Mark Johnson
- Sea Mammal Research unit, University of St Andrews, St Andrews KY16 8LB, UK
| | - Peter T Madsen
- Zoophysiology, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark
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18
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Kaczmarek J, Reichmuth C, McDonald BI, Kristensen JH, Larson J, Johansson F, Sullivan JL, Madsen PT. Drivers of the dive response in pinnipeds; apnea, submergence or temperature? J Exp Biol 2018; 221:jeb.176545. [DOI: 10.1242/jeb.176545] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2017] [Accepted: 05/13/2018] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Long and deep dives in marine mammals are enabled by high mass-specific oxygen stores and the dive response (DR), which reduces oxygen consumption in concert with increased peripheral vasoconstriction and a lowered heart rate during dives. Diving heart rates of pinnipeds are highly variable and modulated by many factors, such as breath holding (apnea), pressure, swimming activity, temperature, and even cognitive control. However, the individual effects of these factors on diving heart rate are poorly understood due to the difficulty of parsing their relative contributions in diving pinnipeds. Here, we examined the effects of apnea and external sensory inputs as autonomic drivers of bradycardia. Specifically, we hypothesized that 1) water stimulation of facial receptors would—as is the case for terrestrial mammals—enhance the dive response, 2) increasing the facial area stimulated would lead to a more intense bradycardia, and 3) cold water would elicit a more pronounced bradycardia than warm water. Three harbor seals (Phoca vitulina) and a California sea lion (Zalophus californianus) were trained to breath-hold in air and with their heads submerged in a basin with variable water level and temperature. We show that bradycardia occurs during apnea without immersion. We also demonstrate that bradycardia is strengthened with both increasing area of facial submersion and colder water. Thus, we conclude that initiation of the DR in pinnipeds is more strongly related to breath holding than in terrestrial mammals, but the degree of the DR is potentiated autonomically via stimulation of facial mechano- and thermoreceptors upon submergence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeppe Kaczmarek
- Zoophysiology, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, C. F. Moellers allé 3, DK-8000 Aarhus C, Denmark
| | - Colleen Reichmuth
- Institute of Marine Sciences, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, USA
| | - Birgitte I. McDonald
- Moss Landing Marine Laboratories, California State University, Moss Landing, CA 95039-9647, USA
| | | | - Josefin Larson
- Fjord and Belt Center, Magrethes plads 1, 5300 Kerteminde, Denmark
| | | | - Jenna L. Sullivan
- Institute of Marine Sciences, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, USA
| | - Peter T. Madsen
- Aarhus Institute of Advanced Studies, Høegh-Guldbergs Gade 6B, DK-8000 Aarhus C, Denmark
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19
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Abstract
Recent publications have emphasized the potential generation of morbid cardiac arrhythmias secondary to autonomic conflict in diving marine mammals. Such conflict, as typified by cardiovascular responses to cold water immersion in humans, has been proposed to result from exercise-related activation of cardiac sympathetic fibers to increase heart rate, combined with depth-related changes in parasympathetic tone to decrease heart rate. After reviewing the marine mammal literature and evaluating heart rate profiles of diving California sea lions (Zalophus californianus), we present an alternative interpretation of heart rate regulation that de-emphasizes the concept of autonomic conflict and the risk of morbid arrhythmias in marine mammals. We hypothesize that: (1) both the sympathetic cardiac accelerator fibers and the peripheral sympathetic vasomotor fibers are activated during dives even without exercise, and their activities are elevated at the lowest heart rates in a dive when vasoconstriction is maximal, (2) in diving animals, parasympathetic cardiac tone via the vagus nerve dominates over sympathetic cardiac tone during all phases of the dive, thus producing the bradycardia, (3) adjustment in vagal activity, which may be affected by many inputs, including exercise, is the primary regulator of heart rate and heart rate fluctuations during diving, and (4) heart beat fluctuations (benign arrhythmias) are common in marine mammals. Consistent with the literature and with these hypotheses, we believe that the generation of morbid arrhythmias because of exercise or stress during dives is unlikely in marine mammals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paul J Ponganis
- Center for Marine Biotechnology & Biomedicine, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093-0204, USA
| | - Birgitte I McDonald
- Moss Landing Marine Laboratories, 8272 Moss Landing Road, Moss Landing, CA 95039, USA
| | - Michael S Tift
- Center for Marine Biotechnology & Biomedicine, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093-0204, USA
| | - Cassondra L Williams
- Center for Marine Biotechnology & Biomedicine, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093-0204, USA
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20
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Tift MS, Hückstädt LA, McDonald BI, Thorson PH, Ponganis PJ. Flipper stroke rate and venous oxygen levels in free-ranging California sea lions. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2017; 220:1533-1540. [PMID: 28167807 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.152314] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2016] [Accepted: 02/01/2017] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
The depletion rate of the blood oxygen store, development of hypoxemia and dive capacity are dependent on the distribution and rate of blood oxygen delivery to tissues while diving. Although blood oxygen extraction by working muscle would increase the blood oxygen depletion rate in a swimming animal, there is little information on the relationship between muscle workload and blood oxygen depletion during dives. Therefore, we examined flipper stroke rate, a proxy of muscle workload, and posterior vena cava oxygen profiles in four adult female California sea lions (Zalophus californianus) during foraging trips at sea. Flipper stroke rate analysis revealed that sea lions minimized muscle metabolism with a stroke-glide strategy when diving, and exhibited prolonged glides during the descent of deeper dives (>100 m). During the descent phase of these deep dives, 55±21% of descent was spent gliding, with the longest glides lasting over 160 s and covering a vertical distance of 340 m. Animals also consistently glided to the surface from 15 to 25 m depth during these deeper dives. Venous hemoglobin saturation (SO2 ) profiles were highly variable throughout dives, with values occasionally increasing during shallow dives. The relationship between SO2 and flipper stroke rate was weak during deeper dives, while this relationship was stronger during shallow dives. We conclude that (1) the depletion of oxygen in the posterior vena cava in deep-diving sea lions is not dependent on stroke effort, and (2) stroke-glide patterns during dives contribute to a reduction of muscle metabolic rate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael S Tift
- Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego, Center for Marine Biodiversity and Biomedicine, 8655 Kennel Way, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Luis A Hückstädt
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Long Marine Lab, 100 Shaffer Road, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, USA
| | - Birgitte I McDonald
- Moss Landing Marine Laboratories, 8272 Moss Landing Road, Moss Landing, CA 95039, USA
| | - Philip H Thorson
- Institute of Marine Sciences, University of California Santa Cruz, Long Marine Laboratory, 100 Shaffer Road, CA 95060, USA
| | - Paul J Ponganis
- Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego, Center for Marine Biodiversity and Biomedicine, 8655 Kennel Way, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
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Maresh JL, Simmons SE, Crocker DE, McDonald BI, Williams TM, Costa DP. Free-swimming northern elephant seals have low field metabolic rates that are sensitive to an increased cost of transport. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2015; 217:1485-95. [PMID: 24790099 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.094201] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Widely ranging marine predators often adopt stereotyped, energy-saving behaviours to minimize the energetic cost of transport while maximizing energy gain. Environmental and anthropogenic disturbances can disrupt energy balance by prompting avoidance behaviours that increase transport costs, thereby decreasing foraging efficiency. We examined the ability of 12 free-ranging, juvenile northern elephant seals (Mirounga angustirostris) to mitigate the effects of experimentally increased transport costs by modifying their behaviour and/or energy use in a compensatory manner. Under normal locomotion, elephant seals had low energy requirements (106.5±28.2 kJ kg(-1) day(-1)), approaching or even falling below predictions of basal requirements. Seals responded to a small increase in locomotion costs by spending more time resting between dives (149±44 s) compared with matched control treatments (102±11 s; P<0.01). Despite incurred costs, most other dive and transit behaviours were conserved across treatments, including fixed, rhythmic swimming gaits. Because of this, and because each flipper stroke had a predictable effect on total costs (P<0.001), total energy expenditure was strongly correlated with time spent at sea under both treatments (P<0.0001). These results suggest that transiting elephant seals have a limited capacity to modify their locomotory behaviour without increasing their transport costs. Based on this, we conclude that elephant seals and other ocean predators occupying similar niches may be particularly sensitive to increased transport costs incurred when avoiding unanticipated disturbances.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer L Maresh
- Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
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22
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Abstract
Heart rate and peripheral blood flow distribution are the primary determinants of the rate and pattern of oxygen store utilisation and ultimately breath-hold duration in marine endotherms. Despite this, little is known about how otariids (sea lions and fur seals) regulate heart rate (fH) while diving. We investigated dive fH in five adult female California sea lions (Zalophus californianus) during foraging trips by instrumenting them with digital electrocardiogram (ECG) loggers and time depth recorders. In all dives, dive fH (number of beats/duration; 50±9 beats min(-1)) decreased compared with surface rates (113±5 beats min(-1)), with all dives exhibiting an instantaneous fH below resting (<54 beats min(-1)) at some point during the dive. Both dive fH and minimum instantaneous fH significantly decreased with increasing dive duration. Typical instantaneous fH profiles of deep dives (>100 m) consisted of: (1) an initial rapid decline in fH resulting in the lowest instantaneous fH of the dive at the end of descent, often below 10 beats min(-1) in dives longer than 6 min in duration; (2) a slight increase in fH to ~10-40 beats min(-1) during the bottom portion of the dive; and (3) a gradual increase in fH during ascent with a rapid increase prior to surfacing. Thus, fH regulation in deep-diving sea lions is not simply a progressive bradycardia. Extreme bradycardia and the presumed associated reductions in pulmonary and peripheral blood flow during late descent of deep dives should (a) contribute to preservation of the lung oxygen store, (b) increase dependence of muscle on the myoglobin-bound oxygen store, (c) conserve the blood oxygen store and (d) help limit the absorption of nitrogen at depth. This fH profile during deep dives of sea lions may be characteristic of deep-diving marine endotherms that dive on inspiration as similar fH profiles have been recently documented in the emperor penguin, another deep diver that dives on inspiration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Birgitte I McDonald
- Zoophysiology, Department of Biological Sciences Building 1130, Aarhus University, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark
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McDonald BI, Ponganis PJ. Insights from venous oxygen profiles: oxygen utilization and management in diving California sea lions. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2014; 216:3332-41. [PMID: 23926312 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.085985] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
The management and depletion of O2 stores underlie the aerobic dive capacities of marine mammals. The California sea lion (Zalophus californianus) presumably optimizes O2 store management during all dives, but approaches its physiological limits during deep dives to greater than 300 m depth. Blood O2 comprises the largest component of total body O2 stores in adult sea lions. Therefore, we investigated venous blood O2 depletion during dives of California sea lions during maternal foraging trips to sea by: (1) recording venous partial pressure of O2 (P(O2)) profiles during dives, (2) characterizing the O2-hemoglobin (Hb) dissociation curve of sea lion Hb and (3) converting the P(O2) profiles into percent Hb saturation (S(O2)) profiles using the dissociation curve. The O2-Hb dissociation curve was typical of other pinnipeds (P50=28±2 mmHg at pH 7.4). In 43% of dives, initial venous S(O2) values were greater than 78% (estimated resting venous S(O2)), indicative of arterialization of venous blood. Blood O2 was far from depleted during routine shallow dives, with minimum venous S(O2) values routinely greater than 50%. However, in deep dives greater than 4 min in duration, venous S(O2) reached minimum values below 5% prior to the end of the dive, but then increased during the last 30-60 s of ascent. These deep dive profiles were consistent with transient venous blood O2 depletion followed by partial restoration of venous O2 through pulmonary gas exchange and peripheral blood flow during ascent. These differences in venous O2 profiles between shallow and deep dives of sea lions reflect distinct strategies of O2 store management and suggest that underlying cardiovascular responses will also differ.
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Affiliation(s)
- Birgitte I McDonald
- Center for Marine Biotechnology and Biomedicine, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, La Jolla, CA 92093-0204, USA.
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Gearheart G, Kooyman GL, Goetz KT, McDonald BI. Migration front of post-moult emperor penguins. Polar Biol 2014. [DOI: 10.1007/s00300-014-1449-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
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25
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Abstract
Lung collapse is considered the primary mechanism that limits nitrogen absorption and decreases the risk of decompression sickness in deep-diving marine mammals. Continuous arterial partial pressure of oxygen profiles in a free-diving female California sea lion (Zalophus californianus) revealed that (i) depth of lung collapse was near 225 m as evidenced by abrupt changes in during descent and ascent, (ii) depth of lung collapse was positively related to maximum dive depth, suggesting that the sea lion increased inhaled air volume in deeper dives and (iii) lung collapse at depth preserved a pulmonary oxygen reservoir that supplemented blood oxygen during ascent so that mean end-of-dive arterial was 74 ± 17 mmHg (greater than 85% haemoglobin saturation). Such information is critical to the understanding and the modelling of both nitrogen and oxygen transport in diving marine mammals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Birgitte I McDonald
- Center for Marine Biotechnology and Biomedicine, Scholander Hall, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, 9500 Gilman Drive no. 0204, La Jolla, CA 92093-0204, USA.
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26
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Robinson PW, Costa DP, Crocker DE, Gallo-Reynoso JP, Champagne CD, Fowler MA, Goetsch C, Goetz KT, Hassrick JL, Hückstädt LA, Kuhn CE, Maresh JL, Maxwell SM, McDonald BI, Peterson SH, Simmons SE, Teutschel NM, Villegas-Amtmann S, Yoda K. Foraging behavior and success of a mesopelagic predator in the northeast Pacific Ocean: insights from a data-rich species, the northern elephant seal. PLoS One 2012; 7:e36728. [PMID: 22615801 PMCID: PMC3352920 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0036728] [Citation(s) in RCA: 112] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2011] [Accepted: 04/05/2012] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
The mesopelagic zone of the northeast Pacific Ocean is an important foraging habitat for many predators, yet few studies have addressed the factors driving basin-scale predator distributions or inter-annual variability in foraging and breeding success. Understanding these processes is critical to reveal how conditions at sea cascade to population-level effects. To begin addressing these challenging questions, we collected diving, tracking, foraging success, and natality data for 297 adult female northern elephant seal migrations from 2004 to 2010. During the longer post-molting migration, individual energy gain rates were significant predictors of pregnancy. At sea, seals focused their foraging effort along a narrow band corresponding to the boundary between the sub-arctic and sub-tropical gyres. In contrast to shallow-diving predators, elephant seals target the gyre-gyre boundary throughout the year rather than follow the southward winter migration of surface features, such as the Transition Zone Chlorophyll Front. We also assessed the impact of added transit costs by studying seals at a colony near the southern extent of the species’ range, 1,150 km to the south. A much larger proportion of seals foraged locally, implying plasticity in foraging strategies and possibly prey type. While these findings are derived from a single species, the results may provide insight to the foraging patterns of many other meso-pelagic predators in the northeast Pacific Ocean.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrick W Robinson
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, California, United States of America.
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McDonald BI, Goebel ME, Crocker DE, Costa DP. Dynamic influence of maternal and pup traits on maternal care during lactation in an income breeder, the antarctic fur seal. Physiol Biochem Zool 2012; 85:243-54. [PMID: 22494980 DOI: 10.1086/665407] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
Life-history theory predicts that selection will favor optimal levels of parental effort that balance benefits of current reproduction with costs to survival and future reproduction. The optimal level of effort depends on parental traits, offspring traits, and provisioning strategy. Additionally, how these factors influence effort may differ depending on the stage of reproduction. The relative importance of maternal and offspring traits on energy allocation to offspring was investigated in known-age Antarctic fur seals Arctocephalus gazella across four stages of reproduction, using birth mass and milk-consumption measurements. Maternal traits were important during three of the four stages investigated, with larger females giving birth to larger pups and investing more in pups during perinatal and molt stages. Pup mass influenced maternal effort during the premolt stage, and provisioning strategy influenced postnatal maternal effort at all stages. Energy provided to the offspring during an attendance visit was positively related to the duration of the foraging-trip/visit cycle; however, when investment was controlled for trip/visit cycle duration, the overall rate of energy transfer was similar across trip durations. In addition to strong effects of maternal mass, pup traits affected energy allocation, suggesting that pup demand is important in determining maternal care. These findings emphasize the importance of considering state variables in life-history studies and suggest that timing of measurements of effort in species with long provisioning periods may influence conclusions and our ability to make comparisons of reproductive effort among species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Birgitte I McDonald
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Long Marine Laboratory, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, USA.
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28
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McDonald BI, Ponganis PJ. Blood oxygen depletion in California sea lions. FASEB J 2012. [DOI: 10.1096/fasebj.26.1_supplement.1071.12] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Birgitte I McDonald
- Center for Marine Biotechnology and BiomedicineScripps Institution of OceanographyLa JollaCA
| | - Paul J Ponganis
- Center for Marine Biotechnology and BiomedicineScripps Institution of OceanographyLa JollaCA
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29
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McDonald BI, Goebel ME, Crocker DE, Costa DP. Biological and environmental drivers of energy allocation in a dependent mammal, the Antarctic fur seal pup. Physiol Biochem Zool 2012; 85:134-47. [PMID: 22418706 DOI: 10.1086/664948] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
Little is known about how variation in the pattern and magnitude of parental effort influences allocation decisions in offspring. We determined the energy budget of Antarctic fur seal pups and examined the relative importance of timing of provisioning, pup traits (mass, condition, sex), and weather (wind chill and solar radiation) on allocation of energy obtained in milk by measuring milk energy intake, field metabolic rate (FMR), and growth rate in 48 Antarctic fur seal pups over three developmental stages (perinatal, premolt, and molt). The relative amount of milk energy used for growth was 59.1% ± 8.1% during the perinatal period but decreased to 23.4% ± 15.5% and 26.0% ± 13.9% during the premolt and molt. This decrease was associated with a greater amount of time spent fasting, along with an increase in pup activity while the mother was at sea foraging. Average daily milk intake, pup mass, and condition were all important in determining how much energy was available for growth, but the amount of energy obtained as milk was the single most important factor determining pup growth. While mean mass-specific FMR did not change with developmental stage (range = 1.74-1.77 mL O(2)/g/h), the factors that accounted for variation in FMR did. Weather (wind chill and solar radiation) and pup traits (mass and condition) influenced mass-specific FMR, but these impacts varied across development. This study provides information about the factors influencing how offspring allocate energy toward growth and maintenance and improves our predictions about how a changing environment may affect energy allocation in pups.
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Affiliation(s)
- Birgitte I McDonald
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Long Marine Laboratory, 100 Shaffer Road, University of California, Santa Cruz, California 95060, USA.
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Costa DP, Huckstadt LA, Crocker DE, McDonald BI, Goebel ME, Fedak MA. Approaches to studying climatic change and its role on the habitat selection of antarctic pinnipeds. Integr Comp Biol 2010; 50:1018-30. [PMID: 21558256 DOI: 10.1093/icb/icq054] [Citation(s) in RCA: 104] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Top predators integrate resources over time and space, and depending on the particular species they represent, different components of the marine environment. The habitat utilization of top predators has been studied using electronic tags to follow their movements and foraging behavior. In addition, these tags provide information on the physical characteristics of the water column (temperature and salinity) at a scale and resolution that is coincident with the animals' behavior. In addition to data on the animals' behavior, these tags provide physical oceanographic data in regions or at times they cannot be collected using other currently available technologies. These data inform us on how these important top predators are likely to respond to climatic change, as well as about how the Southern Ocean is changing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel P Costa
- Long Marine Laboratory, University of California, 100 Shaffer Road, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, USA.
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Hassrick JL, Crocker DE, Teutschel NM, McDonald BI, Robinson PW, Simmons SE, Costa DP. Condition and mass impact oxygen stores and dive duration in adult female northern elephant seals. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2010; 213:585-92. [PMID: 20118309 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.037168] [Citation(s) in RCA: 76] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
The range of foraging behaviors available to deep-diving, air-breathing marine vertebrates is constrained by their physiological capacity to breath-hold dive. We measured body oxygen stores (blood volume and muscle myoglobin) and diving behavior in adult female northern elephant seals, Mirounga angustirostris, to investigate age-related effects on diving performance. Blood volume averaged 74.4+/-17.0 liters in female elephant seals or 20.2+/-2.0% of body mass. Plasma volume averaged 32.2+/-7.8 liters or 8.7+/-0.7% of body mass. Absolute plasma volume and blood volume increased independently with mass and age. Hematocrit decreased weakly with mass but did not vary with age. Muscle myoglobin concentration, while higher than previously reported (7.4+/-0.7 g%), did not vary with mass or age. Pregnancy status did not influence blood volume. Mean dive duration, a proxy for physiological demand, increased as a function of how long seals had been at sea, followed by mass and hematocrit. Strong effects of female body mass (range, 218-600 kg) on dive duration, which were independent of oxygen stores, suggest that larger females had lower diving metabolic rates. A tendency for dives to exceed calculated aerobic limits occurred more frequently later in the at-sea migration. Our data suggest that individual physiological state variables and condition interact to determine breath-hold ability and that both should be considered in life-history studies of foraging behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- J L Hassrick
- Institute of Marine Sciences, University of California at Santa Cruz, 100 Shaffer Road, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, USA.
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Tremblay Y, Shaffer SA, Fowler SL, Kuhn CE, McDonald BI, Weise MJ, Bost CA, Weimerskirch H, Crocker DE, Goebel ME, Costa DP. Interpolation of animal tracking data in a fluid environment. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2006; 209:128-40. [PMID: 16354784 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.01970] [Citation(s) in RCA: 122] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Interpolation of geolocation or Argos tracking data is a necessity for habitat use analyses of marine vertebrates. In a fluid marine environment, characterized by curvilinear structures, linearly interpolated track data are not realistic. Based on these two facts, we interpolated tracking data from albatrosses, penguins, boobies, sea lions, fur seals and elephant seals using six mathematical algorithms. Given their popularity in mathematical computing, we chose Bézier, hermite and cubic splines, in addition to a commonly used linear algorithm to interpolate data. Performance of interpolation methods was compared with different temporal resolutions representative of the less-precise geolocation and the more-precise Argos tracking techniques. Parameters from interpolated sub-sampled tracks were compared with those obtained from intact tracks. Average accuracy of the interpolated location was not affected by the interpolation method and was always within the precision of the tracking technique used. However, depending on the species tested, some curvilinear interpolation algorithms produced greater occurrences of more accurate locations, compared with the linear interpolation method. Total track lengths were consistently underestimated but were always more accurate using curvilinear interpolation than linear interpolation. Curvilinear algorithms are safe to use because accuracy, shape and length of the tracks are either not different or are slightly enhanced and because analyses always remain conservative. The choice of the curvilinear algorithm does not affect the resulting track dramatically so it should not preclude their use. We thus recommend using curvilinear interpolation techniques because of the more realistic fluid movements of animals. We also provide some guidelines for choosing an algorithm that is most likely to maximize track quality for different types of marine vertebrates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yann Tremblay
- University of California, Santa Cruz, Long Marine Laboratory, Center for Ocean Health, 100 Shaffer Road, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, USA.
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McDonald BI, Crocker DE. Physiology and behavior influence lactation efficiency in northern elephant seals (Mirounga angustirostris). Physiol Biochem Zool 2006; 79:484-96. [PMID: 16691515 DOI: 10.1086/501056] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 08/23/2005] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
The efficiency with which mothers convert acquired energy into milk is a key determinant of the magnitude of parental investment in mammals; however, the mechanisms underlying lactation efficiency are poorly understood. Investigations on northern elephant seals have shown lactation efficiency, measured as the proportion of total energy expenditure that goes to the pup as milk, increases with age. In a cross-sectional study the physiological and behavioral determinants of lactation efficiency were investigated in eight young and seven prime (older) elephant seals by conducting behavioral observations and collecting milk, blood, and tissue on days 3 and 22 of lactation. Milk composition, circulating fatty acid and triglyceride concentrations, and mammary and blubber lipoprotein lipase activity were determined. Prime females had significantly greater percent milk fat and circulating fatty acids on day 3 than did young females, but these differences disappeared by day 22. The ability for prime females to produce higher-energy milk early in lactation may allow them to increase lactation efficiency by increasing the rate of energy transfer. In addition, prime females spent significantly more time resting. A combination of reduced activity and more rapid energy delivery likely explains the increase in lactation efficiency with age found in a previous study.
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Affiliation(s)
- Birgitte I McDonald
- Department of Biology, Sonoma State University, Rohnert Park, CA 92948, USA.
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Kuhn CE, McDonald BI, Shaffer SA, Barnes J, Crocker DE, Burns J, Costa DP. Diving physiology and winter foraging behavior of a juvenile leopard seal (Hydrurga leptonyx). Polar Biol 2005. [DOI: 10.1007/s00300-005-0053-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
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