Seasonal home ranges and fidelity to breeding sites among ringed seals |
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Authors: | Brendan P Kelly Oriana H Badajos Mervi Kunnasranta John R Moran Micaela Martinez-Bakker Douglas Wartzok Peter Boveng |
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Institution: | 1. Department of Natural Sciences, University of Alaska Southeast, Juneau, AK, 99801, USA 2. National Marine Mammal Laboratory, Alaska Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA, 17109 Point Lena Loop Road, Juneau, AK, 99801, USA 3. Kachemak Bay Research Reserve, 95 Sterling Hwy., Suite 2, Homer, AK, 99603, USA 4. Finnish Game and Fisheries Research Institute, Turku Game and Fisheries Research, It?inen Pitk?katu 3, 20520, Turku, Finland 5. Auke Bay Laboratories, Alaska Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA, 17109 Point Lena Loop Rd, Juneau, AK, 99801, USA 6. Florida International University, University Park PC 526, Miami, FL, 33199, USA 7. National Marine Mammal Laboratory, Alaska Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA, 7600 Sand Point Way, NE, Seattle, WA, 98115-6349, USA
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Abstract: | Population structure and patterns of habitat use among ringed seals (Phoca hispida) are poorly known, in part because seasonal movements have not been adequately documented. We monitored the movements of
98 ringed seals in the Beaufort and Chukchi seas between 1990 and 2006 using three forms of telemetry. In the winter—spring
period (when the seals were occupying shorefast ice), we used radio and ultra-sonic tags to track movements above and below
the ice, respectively. We used satellite-linked transmitters in summer and fall (when the seals ranged away from their winter
sites) to track at-sea movements. In the shorefast ice habitat, the home ranges of 27 adult males ranged from <1 to 13.9 km2 (median = 0.628) while the home ranges of 28 adult females ranged from <1 to 27.9 km2 (median = 0.652). The 3-dimensional volumes used by 9 seals tracked acoustically under the ice averaged 0.07 (SD = 0.04) km3 for subadults and adult males and 0.13 (SD = 0.04) km3 for adult females. Three of the radio-tracked seals and 9 tracked by satellite ranged up to 1,800 km from their winter/spring
home ranges in summer but returned to the same small (1–2 km2) sites during the ice-bound months in the following year. The restricted movements of ringed seals during the ice-bound season—including
the breeding season—limits their foraging activities for most of the year and may minimize gene flow within the species. |
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