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Grey and harbour seals in France : distribution at sea, connectivity and trends in abundance at haulout sites

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McConnell_2017_DSRPII_GreyandHarbourSeals_AAM.pdf (1.677Mb)
Date
07/2017
Author
Vincent, Cécile
Huon, Mathilde
Caurant, Florence
Dabin, Willy
Deniau, Armel
Dixneuf, Stéphane
Dupuis, Laetitia
Elder, Jean-François
Fremau, Marie-Hélène
Hassani, Sami
Hemon, Audrey
Karpouzopoulos, Jacky
Lefeuvre, Cécile
McConnell, Bernie J.
Moss, Simon E. W.
Provost, Pascal
Spitz, Jérôme
Turpin, Yannis
Ridoux, Vincent
Keywords
Tracking
Telemetry
Density
Census
Management units
English Channel
MSFD
OSPAR
QH301 Biology
NDAS
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Abstract
Grey (Halichoerus grypus) and harbour seals (Phoca vitulina) are sympatric seal species, but they display distinct strategies of habitat use and connectivity between haulout sites. The distribution patterns and variations in relative abundance of both species were investigated along the French coast of the English Channel, at the southern limit of their range where seal numbers are increasing. Regular censuses conducted at all main haulout sites in mainland France showed significant seasonal variations at most sites, with more harbour seals counted during summer (breeding and moulting seasons), and more grey seals during summer only in the eastern English Channel. Trends in maximum haulout numbers at haulout sites showed a significant increase over the last five years, ranging from 9.7 to 30.9% per year for harbour seals, and from 5.8% (in the western English Channel) to 49.2% (in the eastern English Channel) per year for grey seals. These rates of increase in grey seal numbers are not linked to local pup production and most probably result from seal movements from the southwest British Isles and the North Sea, respectively. Aerial surveys conducted across the English Channel showed that most seal observations at sea were concentrated in the north-eastern English Channel. Telemetry showed that the 28 harbour seals tracked remained highly coastal, within a radius of 100 km from their haulout sites, and did not move to other known colonies. Grey seals moved much greater distances, reaching up to 1200 km from their capture site. More than half of the 45 grey seals tracked crossed the English Channel, especially during the breeding season, moving to known colonies in the southwest British Isles and the North Sea. Combining individual tracks and long-term surveys of the seal populations allowed a better understanding of the dynamics of these populations and their connectivity at a larger regional scale. The findings provide direct information for the management of grey and harbour seals within the frame of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive, and highlight focus areas where potential interactions between the two species should be monitored.
Citation
Vincent , C , Huon , M , Caurant , F , Dabin , W , Deniau , A , Dixneuf , S , Dupuis , L , Elder , J-F , Fremau , M-H , Hassani , S , Hemon , A , Karpouzopoulos , J , Lefeuvre , C , McConnell , B J , Moss , S E W , Provost , P , Spitz , J , Turpin , Y & Ridoux , V 2017 , ' Grey and harbour seals in France : distribution at sea, connectivity and trends in abundance at haulout sites ' , Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography , vol. 141 , pp. 294-305 . https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr2.2017.04.004
Publication
Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography
Status
Peer reviewed
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr2.2017.04.004
ISSN
0967-0645
Type
Journal article
Rights
© 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. This work has been made available online in accordance with the publisher’s policies. This is the author created, accepted version manuscript following peer review and may differ slightly from the final published version. The final published version of this work is available at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr2.2017.04.004
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  • University of St Andrews Research
URL
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0967064517301157#appd002
URI
http://hdl.handle.net/10023/16181

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