Postrelease dive ability in rehabilitated harbor seals |
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Authors: | Catriona Morrison Carol Sparling Laila Sadler Alison Charles Ruth Sharples Bernie McConnell |
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Institution: | 1. School of Biological Sciences,University of East Anglia,Norwich NR4 7TJ, United KingdomE‐mail: c.morrison@uea.ac.uk;2. Sea Mammal Research Unit,University of St. Andrews,St. Andrews KY16 8LB, Scotland;3. Wildlife Department, RSPCA HQ,Wilberforce Way,Southwater, West Sussex RH13 9RS, United Kingdom;4. East Winch Wildlife Centre, RSPCA,Station Road, East Winch,King's Lynn, Norfolk PE32 1NR, United Kingdom;5. Commonwealth Industrial and Scientific Research Association (CSIRO),GPO Box 1538,Hobart, Tasmania 7001, Australia |
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Abstract: | The efficacy of seal rehabilitation is examined in a postrelease study of dive ability in harbor seal pups (Phoca vitulina) in the Wash, United Kingdom. Six rehabilitated seals were fitted with Sea Mammal Research Unit (SMRU) Argos Satellite Relay Data Logger tags and their individual dive behavior was monitored for an average of 122 d. The upper 90 percentile edge of dive behavior (dive duration DD90] and percentage of time at‐sea spent in a dive PD90]), in 7 d bins, was used as a proxy for physiological dive ability. The results are compared with data from five wild adult harbor seals. There was no statistically significant difference between (1) the mean track duration of rehabilitated seals (126.20 ± 27.48 SD] d) and adult seals (150.2 ± 24.62 d) (P= 0.108), indicating no evidence that short‐term survival was less in the rehabilitated group; (2) the mean mass‐scaled DD90 of rehabilitated seals (3.95 ± 0.37 min) and adult seals (4.09 ± 0.55 min) (P= 0.632); and (3) the mean PD90 of rehabilitated seals (81.62 ± 1.21%) and adult seals (81.48 ± 3.93%) (P= 0.943). These three results all suggest the success of the rehabilitation program in terms of short‐term survival and dive ability. |
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Keywords: | harbor seal Phoca vitulina rehabilitation dive physiology ontogeny |
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