Movements, Home Range and Site Fidelity of Snapper (Chrysophrys auratus) within a Temperate Marine Protected Area

Abstract A specific study has been carried out for the first time to investigate the homing capability and daily home range of the spiny lobster Palinurus elephas by means of ultrasonic telemetry. Nine lobsters collected in the Capo Gallo — Isola delle Femmine marine protected area (northwestern Sicily, central Mediterranean) were tagged with miniaturized transmitters and released at a single site inside the protected area. The lobsters were monitored with the purpose of calculating their horizontal and vertical positions, analysing their movement patterns to assess their homing capability, and calculating their daily home range. Five lobsters moved back close to the capture sites within the first 20 hours after release (‘homed’). The remaining four lobsters ‘relocated’ to a different refuge. Homed lobsters had a larger home range than relocated lobsters. This study provides the first description of a homing pattern with high spatial resolution in the wild European spiny lobster as inferred by ultrasonic telemetry.

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Diel variation in home range size and precise returning ability after spawning migration of coral reef grouper Epinephelus ongus: implications for effective marine protected area design

Marine Ecology Progress Series ◽

10.3354/meps12779 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 606 ◽

pp. 119-132

Author(s):

A Nanami ◽

H Mitamura ◽

T Sato ◽

T Yamaguchi ◽

K Yamamoto ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Coral Reef ◽

Home Range ◽

Protected Area ◽

Marine Protected Area ◽

Home Range Size ◽

Range Size ◽

Spawning Migration ◽

Diel Variation ◽

Epinephelus Ongus

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Temporal and spatial migration of Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) inside and outside a marine protected area and evidence for the role of prior experience in homing

Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences ◽

10.1139/cjfas-2014-0036 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 71 (11) ◽

pp. 1704-1712 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Corey J. Morris ◽

John M. Green ◽

Paul V.R. Snelgrove ◽

Curtis J. Pennell ◽

L.M. Neil Ollerhead

Keyword(s):

Home Range ◽

Protected Area ◽

Gadus Morhua ◽

Marine Protected Area ◽

Atlantic Cod ◽

Prior Experience ◽

Migration Route ◽

Marine Waters ◽

Acoustic Tracking ◽

Capture Site

Despite efforts to protect the resident Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) population in Gilbert Bay, Labrador, its abundance has decreased since the area was designated a Marine Protected Area (MPA). As part of an effort to understand the reasons for the decline, tracking of cod tagged with surgically implanted ultrasonic transmitters was conducted to determine the migratory behavior of cod in relation to MPA boundaries. Acoustic tracking used a network of data-logging receivers deployed in Gilbert Bay and contiguous marine waters, permitting year-round monitoring of fish movements over several years. Acoustic tracking indicated that 93% of mature migratory cod >55 cm total length homed to the overwintering area where they were initially tagged. During summer months some individuals moved to the mouth of the bay and marine waters outside the MPA. Collectively, the home range of the Gilbert Bay cod encompassed an area within about 40 km of their overwintering and spawning site, but included a large area (∼270 km2) outside the MPA. Eleven percent of tagged cod released outside their home range returned to the capture site within 1 year after tagging. In contrast, fish transplanted 15 or 25 km from the capture site, but still within their home range, exhibited 100% success in homing, suggesting the importance of prior experience with the migration route for successful homing. This study documents the importance of knowledge concerning the migratory and homing behavior of resident fish populations for their conservation and management.

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Risso's dolphins (Grampus griseus) in a proposed Marine Protected Area off east Lewis (Scotland, UK), 2010–2017

Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom ◽

10.1017/s0025315418000516 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 99 (3) ◽

pp. 703-714

Author(s):

Caroline R. Weir ◽

Nicola K. Hodgins ◽

Sarah J. Dolman ◽

Alice E. M. Walters

Keyword(s):

Population Size ◽

Coastal Waters ◽

Protected Area ◽

Site Fidelity ◽

Marine Protected Area ◽

Beaufort Sea ◽

Photo Identification ◽

Grampus Griseus ◽

Water Depths ◽

Ongoing Monitoring

AbstractThe coastal waters of east Lewis from the Butt of Lewis to Loch Erisort are a proposed Marine Protected Area (MPA) for Risso's dolphins (Grampus griseus). A total of 100.4 h (2006.4 km) of active search effort (Beaufort sea states ≤3) was collected during 72 dedicated boat surveys between 2010 and 2017 (primarily in August and September) in the southern part of the MPA and south to the Shiant Isles. Forty Risso's dolphin sightings and 24.1 h of encounter effort were recorded, predominantly along the southern and eastern Eye Peninsula in 20–40 m water depths and at distances <1 km from shore. Group size ranged from one to 50 animals (mean = 11.8 dolphins) and calves occurred in 37.5% of sightings. A total of 2404 shore-based scans (Beaufort sea states ≤3) carried out from Tiumpan Head between September 2011 and December 2017 resulted in 271 (11.3%) ‘dolphin-present’ scans. Dolphins were present year-round, with a seasonal increase between May and October. ‘Calf-present’ scans only occurred between April and October. Photo-identification images from 28 boat surveys produced a minimum population size of 117 animals. There was evidence of high inter- and intra-annual site fidelity, with individual dolphins photographically captured in up to six of the eight survey years, and between two and seven capture dates being recorded for over 45% of individuals within most years. The combined datasets support the importance of east Lewis for Risso's dolphins, and recommendations are made for ongoing monitoring of dolphin occurrence throughout the wider MPA.

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Strong bonds and small home range in a resident bottlenose dolphin community in a Marine Protected Area (Brittany, France, Northeast Atlantic)

Marine Mammal Science ◽

10.1111/mms.12419 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 33 (4) ◽

pp. 1194-1203 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Marie Louis ◽

Mickael Buanic ◽

Cécile Lefeuvre ◽

Phillipe Le Nilliot ◽

Vincent Ridoux ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Home Range ◽

Protected Area ◽

Bottlenose Dolphin ◽

Marine Protected Area ◽

Northeast Atlantic ◽

Small Home Range

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Bonefish ( Albula vulpes ) home range to spawning site linkages support a marine protected area designation

Aquatic Conservation Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems ◽

10.1002/aqc.3534 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Aaron J. Adams ◽

Justin P. Lewis ◽

Andrea M. Kroetz ◽

R. Dean Grubbs

Keyword(s):

Home Range ◽

Protected Area ◽

Marine Protected Area ◽

Albula Vulpes ◽

Spawning Site

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Using complementary visual approaches to investigate residency, site fidelity and movement patterns of the dusky grouper (Epinephelus marginatus) in a Mediterranean marine protected area

Marine Biology ◽

10.1007/s00227-021-03917-9 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 168 (7) ◽

Author(s):

Elena Desiderà ◽

Egidio Trainito ◽

Augusto Navone ◽

Rémi Blandin ◽

Luana Magnani ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Protected Area ◽

Site Fidelity ◽

Marine Protected Area ◽

Small Scale ◽

Underwater Visual Census ◽

Entire Area ◽

Photo Identification ◽

Dusky Grouper ◽

Spatio Temporal ◽

Study Sites

AbstractAssessing individuals’ abundance, residency (presence at a site within a certain period) and site fidelity (tendency to return to the same site in subsequent seasons or years) is crucial for evaluating and improving the effectiveness of spatial conservation/management measures regarding ecologically and socio-economically valuable species. Using underwater visual census (UVC) and photo-identification (photo-ID) techniques, we estimated the abundance, residency and site fidelity of the dusky grouper, Epinephelus marginatus, at two protected sites within the Tavolara-Punta Coda Cavallo Marine Protected Area (Sardinia, Italy) in the summers of 2017–2018. The scope and spatio-temporal resolution of the study was extended by involving volunteer recreational divers in the photo collection. Grouper mean densities varied significantly across sampling dates, with a significant variability between the 2 years and the two investigated sites. At least 94 grouper visited the study sites in the summers of 2017–2018 based on the analysis of 968 high-quality photos using a semi-automated software to photo-identify individuals. Overall, the most frequently sighted grouper was recorded on 32 different days and 21 individuals (22%) identified in 2017 were re-sighted in 2018. The participation of volunteer recreational divers helped detect the inter-site (3.5–4 km apart) movements of a female and a male, supporting previous findings regarding the occurrence of reproduction-related movements. This study provides novel insights into the residency and site-fidelity patterns of the dusky grouper, and its small-scale movements probably related to reproduction. Specifically, we provide indications that effective protection from fishing should encompass the entire area used by grouper for reproductive movements.

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