scholarly journals Humpback whales extend their stay in a breeding ground in the Tropical Eastern Pacific

2019 ◽  
Vol 77 (1) ◽  
pp. 109-118 ◽  
Author(s):  
Isabel Cristina Avila ◽  
Carsten F Dormann ◽  
Carolina García ◽  
Luis Fernando Payán ◽  
María Ximena Zorrilla
Keyword(s):  
National Park ◽  
Arrival Time ◽  
Anthropogenic Activities ◽  
Breeding Site ◽  
Eastern Pacific ◽  
Humpback Whales ◽  
Tropical Eastern Pacific ◽  
The Past ◽  
Management Plans ◽  
Breeding Grounds

Abstract During the austral winter, G-stock humpback whales, Megaptera novaeangliae, migrate to the Tropical Eastern Pacific to breed. To analyse if the whale migration times have changed over time, we analysed 31 years (1988–2018) of arrival and departure times to Gorgona National Park, Colombia, an important breeding site. During this period, whales have significantly changed their arrival time, coming now earlier, but their departure time has not changed significantly. Hence, humpback whales now stay 1 month longer than 31 years ago. Humpbacks arrived in Gorgona at the earliest during the beginning of May and stayed at the most until late December. The change observed in the arrival time to breeding grounds could be related to ice sheet mass changes in autumn in Antarctica and increase in population size over the past decades but we were unable to determine which factor is more important in explaining the observed trend. Management decisions in Colombia need to account for a longer stay, specifically restricting anthropogenic activities from 1May to 31December. We urge other researchers to review their data, in case this shift is evident in other regions and management plans need to be updated.

scholarly journals Morphological characterization and diversity of tadpoles (Amphibia: Anura) at Emas National Park and its surrounding, Goiás State, Brazil

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gabriela Alves-Ferreira ◽  
Ingrid Beatriz Ferreira da Paixão ◽  
Fausto Nomura
Keyword(s):  
National Park ◽  
New Records ◽  
Morphological Diversity ◽  
Morphological Characters ◽  
Morphological Characterization ◽  
Conservation Strategies ◽  
The Past ◽  
Anuran Species ◽  
Management Plans ◽  
Different Populations

Abstract: Tadpoles are abundant in the environments in which they occur and remain in aquatic habitats for longer periods than adults, being relatively easier to collect. Despite the increase in tadpole research in the past decade, our understanding of its morphological diversity remains limited. Here, we provide morphological characterizations for larvae of 15 anuran species that occur at Emas National Park (ENP) and its surroundings, in Goiás, and compare them with descriptions available in the literature for other locations. We also present an update of the list of anuran species known to the ENP, based on tadpole sampling. We found tadpoles from 15 anuran species, of which five represent new records for the park. Many species showed variations in morphological characters when compared with descriptions available in the literature for other locations, reinforcing the importance of describing larvae from different populations. Through the exploration of morphological characters, it is possible to make inferences about the functional diversity of the larvae and questions related to the homology of characters, in addition to assisting in the identification and taxonomic distinction of species. Studies with tadpole communities can generate key information about the factors that drive the anurans' richness and distribution and can provide support for establishing more consistent conservation strategies and management plans.

scholarly journals Flora and Vegetation of Clipperton (La Passion) Atoll, North-Eastern Pacific Ocean: Three Centuries of Changes and Recent Plant Dynamics

2019 ◽  
pp. 1-31
Author(s):  
Xenia Jost ◽  
Christian H. Jost ◽  
Jean-Yves Meyer
Keyword(s):  
Pacific Ocean ◽  
Anthropogenic Activities ◽  
Abiotic Factors ◽  
Vascular Plant ◽  
Plant Cover ◽  
First Record ◽  
Eastern Pacific ◽  
Eastern Pacific Ocean ◽  
The Past ◽  
North Eastern

The terrestrial flora and vegetation of Clipperton (La Passion) atoll, a very remote and small (170 ha of land) French island located in the North-Eastern Pacific Ocean, at ca. 1,000 km west of the Mexican coast, have dramatically changed during the past three centuries. This paper, based on historical testimonies, previously published floristic studies, and an extensive plant inventory conducted during the “International Scientific Expedition PASSION 2015”, show that the atoll has experienced particularly active and rapid vegetation dynamics with alternating plant cover expansion and regression phases. Our results provide the first comprehensive assessment of vegetation cover and vascular plant species distribution based on georeferenced data and mapped with GIS software, as well as the first record of two newly established non-native weeds. The current composition and abundance of native and alien vascular plant communities (15 species including only 4 native taxa) appear to depend not only on abiotic factors (e.g. substrate and climatic events) but also on biotic interactions with animal communities (e.g. native seabirds and crabs). Anthropogenic activities and disturbances (e.g. coconut palm, pig, rat and weed introductions) that have occurred in the past 100 years have also played an important role in explaining the past and current floristic changes.

Presence of Remora remora on Mobula birostris in Revillagigedo National Park, Mexico

2020 ◽  
Vol 71 (3) ◽  
pp. 414
Author(s):  
E. E. Becerril-García ◽  
M. A. Gutiérrez-Ortiz ◽  
P. A. Preciado-González ◽  
A. Ayala-Bocos
Keyword(s):  
Sex Ratio ◽  
Protected Area ◽  
National Park ◽  
Marine Protected Area ◽  
Eastern Pacific ◽  
Tropical Eastern Pacific ◽  
Area Data ◽  
Photographic Records

The ecology of mantas and echeneids in the Tropical Eastern Pacific is poorly understood. In this study we describe the frequency of interactions between the vulnerable Mobula birostris and its symbiont Remora remora based on observations of scientists and tourists in a marine protected area. Data were obtained by analysing underwater photographs of observed mantas with remoras over 139 diving days at sea during the period 2016–17. In all, there were 271 photographic records of this symbiosis, corresponding to 207 mantas, with a mean (±s.d.) of 1.6±0.6 remoras per manta. This study is the first to provide information regarding the sex ratio, length, morphotype frequency and echeneids per manta of M. birostris in the Tropical Eastern Pacific.

scholarly journals First record of the blacktip reef shark Carcharhinus melanopterus (Carcharhiniformes: Carcharhinidae) from the Tropical Eastern Pacific

2017 ◽  
pp. 275-278
Author(s):  
Andrés López-Garro ◽  
Ilena Zanella ◽  
Geiner Golfín-Duarte ◽  
Maikel Pérez-Montero
Keyword(s):  
Costa Rica ◽  
National Park ◽  
First Record ◽  
Eastern Pacific ◽  
Juvenile Male ◽  
Eastern Tropical Pacific ◽  
Tropical Eastern Pacific ◽  
Reef Shark ◽  
Reef Sharks ◽  
Carcharhinus Melanopterus

The blacktip reef shark Carcharhinus melanopterus, is one of the most common Indo-Pacific reef sharks. On April 29, 2012, a juvenile male blacktip reef shark measuring 89 cm total length (TL), was incidentally caught during a research expedition in Chatham Bay, Isla del Coco National Park, Costa Rica, located in the Tropical Eastern Pacific. This is the first record of the species from Isla del Coco National Park, Costa Rica, and from the Tropical Eastern Pacific. Citation: López-Garro, A., I. Zanella, G. Golfín-Duarte & M. Pérez-Montero. 2012. First record of the blacktip reef shark Carcharhinus melanopterus (Carcharhiniformes: Carcharhinidae) from the Eastern Tropical Pacific. Rev. Biol. Trop. 60 (Suppl. 3): 275-278. Epub 2012 Dec 01.

scholarly journals A new record of Harlequin Shrimp (Malacostraca: Decapoda: Palaemonidae: Hymenocera picta Dana, 1852) in the southern Mexican Pacific Reefs

2017 ◽  
Vol 9 (8) ◽  
pp. 10571 ◽  
Author(s):  
Omar Valencia-Mendez ◽  
Andres Lopez-Perez ◽  
Betel Martinez-Guerrero ◽  
Virgilio Antonio-Perez ◽  
Eduardo Ramirez-Chavez
Keyword(s):  
New Record ◽  
National Park ◽  
Potential Distribution ◽  
Eastern Pacific ◽  
Sea Star ◽  
Tropical Eastern Pacific ◽  
Central Pacific ◽  
Mexican Pacific ◽  
Pacific Waters ◽  
Maximum Entropy Modelling

The Harlequin Shrimp Hymenocera picta is abundant in the Indo-Pacific and Central Pacific regions, but there are few reports of it from the eastern Pacific.  Two pairs of the Harlequin Shrimp were observed feeding on the Sea Star Phataria unifascialis (Gray, 1840) in the reefs of Huatulco National Park, Mexican Pacific.  This paper reports the occurrence of H. picta in Mexican Pacific waters and extends its previous distribution by 1,270km north of El Ocotal, Costa Rica in the eastern Pacific equatorial zone.  In addition, we evaluate the potential distribution of H. picta along the tropical eastern Pacific using the Maximum-Entropy modelling algorithm.

A multidecadal-scale tropically-driven global teleconnection over the past millennium and its recent strengthening

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-51
Author(s):  
Xiaofang Feng ◽  
Qinghua Ding ◽  
Liguang Wu ◽  
Charles Jones ◽  
Ian Baxter ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Surface Temperature ◽  
Eastern Pacific ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Boreal Winter ◽  
Past Century ◽  
Tropical Eastern Pacific ◽  
Atmospheric Teleconnection ◽  
Temperature Changes ◽  
The Past ◽  
Circulation Mode

AbstractIn the past 40 years, the global annual mean surface temperature has experienced a non-uniform warming, differing from the spatially uniform warming simulated by the forced responses of large multi-model ensembles to anthropogenic forcing. Rather, it exhibits significant asymmetry between the Arctic and Antarctic, intermittent and spatially varying warming trends along the Northern Hemisphere (NH) mid-latitudes and a slight cooling in the tropical eastern Pacific. In particular, this “wavy” pattern of temperature changes over the NH mid-latitudes features strong cooling over Eurasia in boreal winter. Here, we show that these non-uniform features of surface temperature changes are likely tied together by tropical eastern Pacific sea surface temperatures (SSTs), via a global atmospheric teleconnection. Using six reanalyses, we find that this teleconnection can be consistently obtained as a leading circulation mode in the past century. This tropically-driven teleconnection is associated with a Pacific SST pattern resembling the Interdecadal Pacific Oscillation (IPO), and hereafter referred to as the IPO-related Bipolar Teleconnection (IPO-BT). Further, two paleo-reanalysis reconstruction datasets show that the IPO-BT is a robust recurrent mode over the past 400 and 2000 years. The IPO-BT mode may thus serve as an important internal mode that regulates high-latitude climate variability on multidecadal time scales, favoring a warming (cooling) episode in the Arctic accompanied by cooling (warming) over Eurasia and the Southern Ocean (SO). Thus, the spatial non-uniformity of recent surface temperature trends may be partially explained by the enhanced appearance of the IPO-BT mode by a transition of the IPO toward a cooling phase in the eastern Pacific in the past decades.

scholarly journals Searching for humpback whales in a historical whaling hotspot of the Coral Sea, South Pacific

2020 ◽  
Vol 42 ◽  
pp. 67-82
Author(s):  
C Garrigue ◽  
S Derville ◽  
C Bonneville ◽  
CS Baker ◽  
T Cheeseman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Marine Protected Area ◽  
New Caledonia ◽  
Anthropogenic Activities ◽  
South Pacific ◽  
Humpback Whales ◽  
Key Factors ◽  
Breeding Area ◽  
Pristine Area ◽  
Breeding Grounds ◽  
Commercial Whaling

Humpback whales Megaptera novaeangliae were severely depleted by commercial whaling. Understanding key factors in their recovery is a crucial step for their conservation worldwide. In Oceania, the Chesterfield-Bellona archipelago was a primary whaling site in the 19th century, yet has been left almost unaffected by anthropogenic activities since. We present the results of the first multidisciplinary dedicated surveys in the archipelago assessing humpback whale populations 2 centuries post-whaling. We encountered 57 groups during 24 survey days (2016-2017), among which 35 whales were identified using photographs of natural markings (photo-ID), 38 using genotyping and 22 using both. Humpback whales were sparsely distributed (0.041 whales km-1): most sightings concentrated in shallow inner-reef waters and neighbouring offshore shallow banks. The recently created marine protected area covers most of the areas of high predicted habitat suitability and high residence time from satellite-tracked whales. Surprisingly for a breeding area, sex ratios skewed towards females (1:2.4), and 45% of females were with calf. Connectivity was established with the New Caledonia breeding area to the east (mtDNA FST = 0.001, p > 0.05, 12 photo-ID and 10 genotype matches) and with the Australian Great Barrier Reef breeding area to the west (mtDNA FST = 0.006, p > 0.05). Movement of satellite-tracked whales and photo-ID matches also suggest connections with the east Australian migratory corridor. This study confirms that humpback whales still inhabit the Chesterfield-Bellona archipelago 2 centuries post whaling, and that this pristine area potentially plays a role in facilitating migratory interchange among breeding grounds of the western South Pacific.

Modeling cetacean habitat use in an urban coastal area in southeastern Brazil

2020 ◽  
Vol 642 ◽  
pp. 227-240
Author(s):  
L Lodi ◽  
R Tardin ◽  
G Maricato
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Use ◽  
Protected Areas ◽  
Linear Models ◽  
Anthropogenic Activities ◽  
Buffer Zone ◽  
Humpback Whales ◽  
Southeastern Brazil ◽  
Major Influence ◽  
Cetacean Species ◽  
Few Data

Most studies of cetacean habitat use do not consider the influence of anthropogenic activities. We investigated the influence of environmental and anthropogenic variables on habitat use by humpback Megaptera novaeangliae and Bryde’s whales Balaenoptera brydei off the coast of the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro. Although there are 2 marine protected areas (MPAs) in this area, few data are available on cetacean habitat use or on the overlap of different cetacean species within these MPAs. Our aim was to evaluate the effectiveness of the MPAs and propose a buffer zone to better protect the biodiversity of the study area. We conducted systematic surveys and developed spatial eigenvector generalized linear models to characterize habitat use by the species in the study area. Habitat use by humpback whales was influenced only by depth, whereas for Bryde’s whales there was the additional influence of anthropogenic variables. For Bryde’s whales, which use the area for feeding, sea surface temperature and the distance to anchorages had a major influence on habitat use. We also showed that neither of the MPAs in the study area adequately protects the hotspots of either whale species. Most of the humpback whale grid cells with high sighting predictions were located within 2 km of the MPAs, while areas of high sighting prediction of Bryde’s whales were located up to 5 km from the MPAs, closer to beaches. Our findings provide important insights for the delimitation of protected areas and zoning of the MPAs.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document