Should I stay or should I go? Modelling year-round habitat suitability and drivers of residency for fin whales in the California Current

Kylie L Scales; Gregory S Schorr; Elliott L Hazen; Steven J Bograd; Peter I Miller; Russel D Andrews; Alexandre N Zerbini; Erin A Falcone

doi:10.1111/ddi.12611

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Should I stay or should I go? Modelling year-round habitat suitability and drivers of residency for fin whales in the California Current

Journal article

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Should I stay or should I go? Modelling year-round habitat suitability and drivers of residency for fin whales in the California Current

Kylie L Scales, Gregory S Schorr, Elliott L Hazen, Steven J Bograd, Peter I Miller, Russel D Andrews, Alexandre N Zerbini and Erin A Falcone

Diversity and Distributions, Vol.23(10), pp.1204-1215

2017

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/ddi.12611

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Abstract

cetacean

Finite-Size Lyapunov Exponent

habitat model

LIMPET tag

ocean fronts

remote sensing

satellite tracking

species distribution model

telemetry

upwelling

Aim: Understanding the spatial ecology of endangered species is crucial to predicting habitat use at scales relevant to conservation and management. Here, we aim to model the influence of biophysical conditions on habitat suitability for endangered fin whales Balaenoptera physalus, with a view to informing management in a heavily impacted ocean region. Location: We satellite-tracked the movements of 67 fin whales through the California Current System (CCS), a dynamic eastern bound ry upwelling ecosystem in the Northeast Pacific. Methods: We use a multi-scale modelling framework to elucidate biophysical influences on habitat suitability for fin whales in the CCS. Using generalized additive mixed models, we quantify the influence of a suite of remotely sensed variables on broadscale patterns of occupancy and present the first year-round, high-resolution predictions of seasonal habitat suitability. Further, we model the influence of contemporaneous biophysical conditions on individual level residence times in high-use habitat. Results: We present evidence of year-round habitat suitability in the southern California Current System, robust to interannual variability, establishing that North Pacific fin whales do not follow the canonical baleen whale migration model. Within the high-use habitat in the Southern California Bight (SCB), individual-level residency in localized areas (n = 16 for >30 days; n = 4 for >6 months) was associated with warm, shallow, nearshore waters (>18°C, <500 m) with cool waters (14-15°C) occurring over complex seafloor topographies and with convergent (sub)mesoscale structures at the surface. Main Conclusions: Biophysical conditions in the southern CCS generate productive foraging habitats that can support the fin whale population year-round and allow for extended periods of residency in localized areas. High-use habitats for fin whales are colocated with areas of intense human use, including international shipping routes and a major naval training range. Seaso nal habitat suitability maps presented here could inform the management of anthropogenic threats to endangered baleen whales in this globally significant biodiversity hotspot.

Details

Title: Should I stay or should I go? Modelling year-round habitat suitability and drivers of residency for fin whales in the California Current
Authors: Kylie L Scales (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast - Faculty of Science, Health, Education and Engineering
Gregory S Schorr (Author) - Foundation for Marine Ecology and Telemetry Research, United States
Elliott L Hazen (Author) - NOAA Southwest Fisheries Science Center, United States
Steven J Bograd (Author) - NOAA Southwest Fisheries Science Center, United States
Peter I Miller (Author) - Plymouth Marine Laboratory, United Kingdom
Russel D Andrews (Author) - University of Alaska Fairbanks, United States
Alexandre N Zerbini (Author) - NOAA Alaska Fisheries Science Center, United States
Erin A Falcone (Author) - Foundation for Marine Ecology and Telemetry Research, United States
Publication details: Diversity and Distributions, Vol.23(10), pp.1204-1215
Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
Date published: 2017
DOI: 10.1111/ddi.12611
ISSN: 1366-9516
Copyright note: Copyright © 2017 Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Ltd. This is the accepted version of the following article: Scales KL, Schorr GS, Hazen EL, et al. Should I stay or should I go? Modelling year-round habitat suitability and drivers of residency for fin whales in the California Current. Divers Distrib. 2017;23:1204-1215. https://doi.org/10.1111/ddi.12611, which has been published in final form at http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/ddi.12611
Organisation Unit: School of Science and Engineering - Legacy; University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland; School of Science, Technology and Engineering
Language: English
Record Identifier: 99450550502621
Output Type: Journal article

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