1. Light-level geolocators reveal spatial variations in interactions between northern fulmars and fisheries
- Author
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Yann Kolbeinsson, Per Fauchald, Vegard Sandøy Bråthen, Arnaud Tarroux, Jón Einar Jónsson, Hallvard Strøm, Jóhannis Danielsen, Benjamin Dupuis, Erlend Lorentzen, Oskar Bjørnstad, Paul M. Thompson, Erpur Snær Hansen, Françoise Amélineau, Hálfdán Helgi Helgason, Sébastien Descamps, Morten Helberg, Thorkell Lindberg Thórarinsson, Gunnar Thor Hallgrimsson, Norwegian Polar Institute, École normale supérieure de Lyon (ENS de Lyon), Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1 (UCBL), Université de Lyon, Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), and Østfold University College
- Subjects
0106 biological sciences ,Global location sensor ,GLS ,fulmarus glacialis ,Marinbiologi: 497 [VDP] ,seabird−fishery interactions ,Aquatic Science ,010603 evolutionary biology ,01 natural sciences ,Marine biology: 497 [VDP] ,Management policy ,Light level ,Seabird-fisheriy interactions ,[SDV.BA.ZV]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Animal biology/Vertebrate Zoology ,Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics ,[SDV.EE]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Ecology, environment ,Fulmarus glacialis ,Ecology ,management policy ,010604 marine biology & hydrobiology ,discards ,Discards ,Activity budget ,Fishery ,Geography ,global location sensory ,activity budget - Abstract
Seabird-fishery interactions are a common phenomenon of conservation concern. Here, we highlight how light-level geolocators provide promising opportunities to study these interactions. By examining raw light data, it is possible to detect encounters with artificial lights at night, while conductivity data give insight on seabird behaviour during encounters. We used geolocator data from 336 northern fulmars Fulmarus glacialis tracked from 12 colonies in the North-East Atlantic and Barents Sea during the non-breeding season to (1) confirm that detections of artificial lights correspond to encounters with fishing vessels by comparing overlap between fishing effort and both the position of detections and the activity of birds during encounters, (2) assess spatial differences in the number of encounters among wintering areas and (3) test whether some individuals forage around fishing vessels more often than others. Most (88.1%) of the tracks encountered artificial light at least once, with 9.5 ± 0.4 (SE) detections on average per 6 mo non-breeding season. Encounters occurred more frequently where fishing effort was high, and birds from some colonies had higher probabilities of encountering lights at night. During encounters, fulmars spent more time foraging and less time resting, strongly suggesting that artificial lights reflect the activity of birds around fishing vessels. Inter-individual variability in the probability of encountering light was high (range: 0-68 encounters per 6 mo non-breeding season), meaning that some individuals were more often associated with fishing vessels than others, independently of their colony of origin. Our study highlights the potential of geolocators to study seabird-fishery interactions at a large scale and a low cost.
- Published
- 2021