Journal Article

Year-round distribution of Northeast Atlantic seabird populations: applications for population management and marine spatial planning

Ezhov, A, Ekker, M, Dehnhard, N, Systad, Gh, Bjørnstad, O, Lorentzen, E, Wanless, S, Helberg, M, Gavrilo, M, Amélineau, F, Bråthen, Vs, Johansen, Mk, Danielsen, J, Christensen-Dalsgaard, S, Descamps, S, Åström, J, Chastel, Olivier, Hallgrimsson, Gt, Daunt, F, Centre d'Études Biologiques de Chizé - UMR 7372 (CEBC) ; La Rochelle Université (ULR)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement (INRAE), Fauchald, P, Moe, B, Langset, M, Newell, M, Anker-Nilssen, T, Jónsson, Je, Erikstad, Ke, Reiertsen, Tk, Krasnov, Y, Harris, M, Wojczulanis-Jakubas, K, Tarroux, A, Olsen, B, Hansen, Es, Thórarinsson, Tl, Thompson, P, Kolbeinsson, Y, Strøm, H, Merkel, B, Helgason, Hh, Lorentsen, Sh

2021

Overview

Tracking data of marine predators are increasingly used in marine spatial management. We developed a spatial dataset with estimates of the monthly distribution of six pelagic seabird species breeding in the Northeast Atlantic. The dataset is based on year-round global location sensor (GLS) tracking data of 2356 adult seabirds from 2006-2019 from a network of seabird colonies, data describing the physical environment, and data on seabird population sizes. Tracking and environmental data were combined in monthly species distribution models (SDMs). Cross-validations were used to assess the transferability of models between years and breeding locations. The analyses showed that birds from colonies close to each other (<500 km apart) used the same nonbreeding habitats, while birds from distant colonies (>1000 km) used colony-specific, and in many cases, non-overlapping habitats. Based on these results, the SDM from the nearest model colony was used to predict the distribution of all seabird colonies lying within a species-specific cut-off distance (400-500 km). The uncertainties in predictions were estimated by cluster bootstrap sampling. The resulting dataset consists of 4692 map layers, each layer predicting the densities of birds from a given species, colony and month across the North Atlantic. The dataset represents the annual distribution of 23.5 million adult pelagic seabirds, or 87% of the Northeast Atlantic breeding population of the study species. We show how the dataset can be used in population and spatial management applications, including the detection of population-specific nonbreeding habitats and identifying populations influenced by marine protected areas.

• Publisher: Inter Research,CCSD,Inter-Research Science Center
• Subject: Annual distribution / Aquatic birds / Birds / Breeding / Colonies / Datasets / Environmental planning / Environmental Sciences / Geographical distribution / Habitats / Management / Marine protected areas / Marine resources / Monthly distribution / Population / Population studies / Populations / Predators / Protected areas / Seabirds / Spatial data / Spatial planning / Species / THEME SECTION / Tracking