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Identifying Important Atlantic Areas for the conservation of Balearic shearwaters: spatial overlap with conservation areas
- Source :
- Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography, Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography, Elsevier, 2017, 141, pp.285-293. ⟨10.1016/j.dsr2.2016.11.011⟩
- Publication Year :
- 2017
- Publisher :
- HAL CCSD, 2017.
-
Abstract
- International audience; Marine protected areas (MPAs) are considered one of the main tools in both fisheries and conservation management to protect threatened species and their habitats around the globe. However, MPAs are underrepresented in marine environments compared to terrestrial environments. Within this context, we studied the Atlantic non-breeding distribution of the southern population of Balearic shearwaters (Puffinus mauretanicus) breeding in Ibiza during the 2011-2012 period based on global location sensing (GLS) devices. Our objectives were (1) to identify overall Important Atlantic Areas (IAAs) from a southern population, (2) to describe spatio-temporal patterns of oceanographic habitat use, and (3) to assess whether existing conservation areas (Natura 2000 sites and marine Important Bird Areas (IBAs)) cover the main IAAs of Balearic shearwaters. Our results highlighted that the Atlantic staging (from June to October in 2011) dynamic of the southern population was driven by individual segregation at both spatial and temporal scales. Individuals ranged in the North-East Atlantic over four main IAAs (Bay of Biscay: BoB, Western Iberian shelf: WIS, Gulf of Cadiz: GoC, West of Morocco: WoM). While most individuals spent more time on the WIS or in the GoC, a small number of birds visited IAAs at the extremes of their Atlantic distribution range (i.e., BoB and WoM). The chronology of the arrivals to the IAAs showed a latitudinal gradient with northern areas reached earlier during the Atlantic staging. The IAAs coincided with the most productive areas (higher chlorophyll a values) in the NE Atlantic between July and October. The spatial overlap between IAAs and conservation areas was higher for Natura 2000 sites than marine IBAs (areas with and without legal protection, respectively). Concerning the use of these areas, a slightly higher proportion of estimated positions fell within marine IBAs compared to designated Natura 2000 sites, with Spanish and Portuguese conservation areas being the most visited. Our results support the current design of conservation areas in Spain and Portugal regarding the protection of adult breeders of this highly mobile species.
- Subjects :
- 0106 biological sciences
Range (biology)
Puffinus
Population
Context (language use)
Oceanography
010603 evolutionary biology
01 natural sciences
Regional Fisheries Management Organisations
Marine Important Bird Areas
14. Life underwater
education
education.field_of_study
biology
Ecology
Geolocation
010604 marine biology & hydrobiology
Natura 2000 network
15. Life on land
biology.organism_classification
Geography
Habitat
Threatened species
[SDE]Environmental Sciences
Marine protected area
Non-breeding staging dynamic
Natura 2000
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 09670645
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography, Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography, Elsevier, 2017, 141, pp.285-293. ⟨10.1016/j.dsr2.2016.11.011⟩
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....2166b3624eae11d472b6f0874a628d68
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr2.2016.11.011⟩