Pedro Afonso, Ricardo Serrão Santos and the Biotelemetry WGroup

FCT / Laboratórios Associados – Gulbenkian, 30 July 2009

 Technologies for biotelemetry Technologies for biotelemetry

in the Azores in the Azores and the wider Atlanticand the wider Atlantic

Marine resource stewardship

Ecosystem-based management

Identification of critical habitats and habitat “hot spots”

Knowledge of movements and interactions w/ environment.

Application and development of novel biotelemetry technologies

Marine reserves can help conservation & fisheries sustainability if properly designed habitat use & movements

Coastal spatial management: the usual suspectCoastal spatial management: the usual suspect

Where Where is the is the kkllfish? fish?

Size, location & spacing of reserves: habitat use & movements

Acoustic tags

Fixed receivers

4 km

4 km

N=5

4 km

4 km

4 km

Development of GIS modeling framework for MPA design:Integrating movements, abundance & habitat information

...in support of decision-making processes

Development of GIS modeling framework for MPA design:Integrating movements, abundance & habitat information

Connectivity scenarios

Seamount fisheries: moving deeperSeamount fisheries: moving deeper

Goraz:Adults in seamounts seeded by nurseries (EFH) inshore

Boca-negra:Adult populations seeded by common pool

Seamount fisheries: moving deeperSeamount fisheries: moving deeper

?

• acoustic tagging of seamount species• deepwater (200-300m) acoustic stations w/ acoustic releases

Testing the island – seamount hypothesisTesting the island – seamount hypothesis

Benthic habitat mapping

Seamount fisheries: moving deeperSeamount fisheries: moving deeper

Integrating movements with synoptic informationIntegrating movements with synoptic information

Deep scatering layer

echo-sounding ROV video

The wider, integrative scale:The wider, integrative scale:

Question: role of Oceanic Ridges for pan-oceanic top predators?

The Azores Region as critical habitat?

Approach: simultaneously monitor the behaviour of diverse taxa

using high-tech satellite biotelemetry

Sperm whale feeding behaviour

Pan-Oceanic Migrants: why stop in the Azores?Pan-Oceanic Migrants: why stop in the Azores?

Temperature-Depth recorders+

Radio telemetry

Pan-Oceanic Migrants: why stop in the Azores?Pan-Oceanic Migrants: why stop in the Azores?Horizontal large-scale migrations of baleen whales

Pan-Oceanic Migrants: why stop in the Azores?Pan-Oceanic Migrants: why stop in the Azores?

Feeding trips of Cory’s shearwater nesting adults

GPS and satellite positioning

Vertical (TDR) and horizontal satellite

tracking+

Acoustic telemetry

Pan-Oceanic Migrants: why stop in the Azores?Pan-Oceanic Migrants: why stop in the Azores?

Mesoscale and pan-oceanic migrations of blueshark

Pan-Oceanic Migrants: why stop in the Azores?Pan-Oceanic Migrants: why stop in the Azores?

Mesoscale and pan-oceanic migrations of Loggerhead turtles

Vertical (TDR) and horizontal

satellite tracking

Technical Mitigation measures: Post-release behaviour of hooked turtlesTechnical Mitigation measures: Post-release behaviour of hooked turtles

International longline fishery: new priorities, old problemsInternational longline fishery: new priorities, old problems

Vertical (TDR) and horizontal

satellite tracking

Biotelemetry for the sustainable managementBiotelemetry for the sustainable management

Combining different technologies Combining different technologies

to resolve the various temporal and spatial scales of behaviorsto resolve the various temporal and spatial scales of behaviors

Biotelemetry for the sustainable managementBiotelemetry for the sustainable management

Submersibles, ROVs and scans for habitat mapping and surveyingSubmersibles, ROVs and scans for habitat mapping and surveying

Synoptic description of the oceanSynoptic description of the ocean