St Andrews Research Repository

St Andrews University Home
View Item 
  •   St Andrews Research Repository
  • University of St Andrews Research
  • University of St Andrews Research
  • University of St Andrews Research
  • View Item
  •   St Andrews Research Repository
  • University of St Andrews Research
  • University of St Andrews Research
  • University of St Andrews Research
  • View Item
  •   St Andrews Research Repository
  • University of St Andrews Research
  • University of St Andrews Research
  • University of St Andrews Research
  • View Item
  • Login
JavaScript is disabled for your browser. Some features of this site may not work without it.

Population abundance and density estimates for Costa Rica’s endemic sea snake, Hydrophis platurus xanthos

Thumbnail
View/Open
Bessesen_2022_FMS_Population_CC.pdf (13.72Mb)
Date
07/07/2022
Author
Bessesen, Brooke L.
Oedekoven, Cornelia S.
Galbreath, Gary J.
González-Suárez, Manuela
Keywords
Abundance estimation models
Activity bias
Availability bias
Distance sampling
Golfo Dulce yellow sea snake
Hydrophis platurus xanthos
Line transect survey
Marine reptile
QH301 Biology
NDAS
Metadata
Show full item record
Altmetrics Handle Statistics
Altmetrics DOI Statistics
Abstract
Population abundance and density estimates provide key information for conservation assessment and prioritization of efforts and management. However, data are still largely unavailable for many taxa, including sea snakes, which appear to be facing global declines. Here, we present the first quantitative abundance and density estimates for the geographically isolated sea snake Hydrophis platurus xanthos endemic to the inner basin of Golfo Dulce, Costa Rica. Using systematic distance sampling methods, we obtained and analyzed 199 snake detections from 46 transect lines covering the entire known distribution (totaling nine days and 469 km of effort). Our modeling methods accounted for (i) the probability of detecting a snake given it was available to be detected (ii) the average availability of snakes at the water surface during a 24-hr cycle, and (iii) the by-hour variance in the taxon’s activity pattern. The best estimate of population abundance was 29781 individuals (95% CI=20104–44115) with an estimated density of 76 snakes/km2. Without historical abundance estimates or minimum viable population size, it is unknown whether this number represents a healthy population. However, with all individuals inhabiting a relatively small inlet increasingly exposed to anthropogenic impacts, the long-term persistence of H. p. xanthos may be threatened by ongoing impacts (boat propeller strikes, agricultural runoff, and climate change), as well as unforeseen events in the future.
Citation
Bessesen , B L , Oedekoven , C S , Galbreath , G J & González-Suárez , M 2022 , ' Population abundance and density estimates for Costa Rica’s endemic sea snake, Hydrophis platurus xanthos ' , Frontiers in Marine Science , vol. 9 , 924966 . https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2022.924966
Publication
Frontiers in Marine Science
Status
Peer reviewed
DOI
https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2022.924966
ISSN
2296-7745
Type
Journal article
Rights
Copyright © 2022 Bessesen, Oedekoven, Galbreath and González-Suárez. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
Description
Open access publication fees were provided by the University of Reading.
Collections
  • University of St Andrews Research
URI
http://hdl.handle.net/10023/25808

Items in the St Andrews Research Repository are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.

Advanced Search

Browse

All of RepositoryCommunities & CollectionsBy Issue DateNamesTitlesSubjectsClassificationTypeFunderThis CollectionBy Issue DateNamesTitlesSubjectsClassificationTypeFunder

My Account

Login

Open Access

To find out how you can benefit from open access to research, see our library web pages and Open Access blog. For open access help contact: openaccess@st-andrews.ac.uk.

Accessibility

Read our Accessibility statement.

How to submit research papers

The full text of research papers can be submitted to the repository via Pure, the University's research information system. For help see our guide: How to deposit in Pure.

Electronic thesis deposit

Help with deposit.

Repository help

For repository help contact: Digital-Repository@st-andrews.ac.uk.

Give Feedback

Cookie policy

This site may use cookies. Please see Terms and Conditions.

Usage statistics

COUNTER-compliant statistics on downloads from the repository are available from the IRUS-UK Service. Contact us for information.

© University of St Andrews Library

University of St Andrews is a charity registered in Scotland, No SC013532.

  • Facebook
  • Twitter