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In the Mediterranean Sea, interactions between marine species and human activities are prevalent. The coastal distribution of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) and the predation pressure they put on fishing stocks lead to regular interactions with fisheries. Multispecies occupancy models allow mapping co-occurrence between two (or more) species while accounting for false negatives and potential interspecific dependance. Here, we illustrated how to extend multispecies occupancy model to integrate multiple datasets to quantify spatial co-occurrence between trawlers and bottlenose dolphins in the Gulf of Lion, French Mediterranean Sea. We combined bottlenose dolphin and trawler detections and non-detections from both aerial surveys and boat surveys in the Gulf of Lion and map potential interactions. Possibility to integrate several datasources into multipsecies occupancy models opens promising avenues in the study of interactions between human activities and marine mammals that occur at large spatial scales

Monitoring Floating Marine Macro Litter (FMML) is a global priority, stressed within international programs, and regulated for the European Seas by the Marine Strategy Framework Directive. Although some well-defined common protocols exist for the assessment of beach litter and ingested litter, methodologies for FMML monitoring still vary, leading to some inconsistent results and hampering the global assessment of this threat. Within the MEDSEALITTER project (2016–2019), field experiments were implemented to define optimal monitoring parameters for FMML visual monitoring at different spatial scales, by assessing the influence of platform speed, strip width, observers experience, weather conditions, and litter size on its detectability. Along with the results of these experiments, we present the FMML density ranges detected across the over 20,000 km surveyed, highlighting a decreasing gradient from river mouths to coastal areas and the open sea, and providing a valuable contribution to the assessment of FMML in the Mediterranean Sea.

International audience; Collisions with large vessels potentially present a major conservation issue for sperm whales in the Pelagos Sanctuary in the northwestern Mediterranean Sea. The exact numbers and locations of ship strikes remain largely unknown at present. In this study, sightings of sperm whales in summer (June–September) were gathered for the period between 1998 and 2008 from nine French and Italian organisations, together covering an area of more than 68,000km. Working on a regular grid of 0.1° × 0.1° latitude/longitude cells, approximate surface density of the whales was calculated using kriging methods. A database of shipping lanes of ferries and merchant vessels was assembled, and traffic density was mapped (kilometres travelled per cell). The data was overlayed and multiplied, using ArcGis, to create a relative density surface map of sperm whales correlated with the relative density of maritime traffic. Several maps of collision risk were drawn up according to the speed class of the vessels. Of living animals that had been photo-identified, 9% had scars attributed to ship strike. Results show that sperm whales are at high risk from merchant vessels along the French and Italian continental coasts and at risk from conventional ferries on the east side of the islands of Corsica and Sardinia. It was calculated that 74 animals could be in a ship strike risk situation during the summer period in the Pelagos Sanctuary. Based on these results, mitigation measures already in place were reviewed and new measures to reduce ship strike risk are suggested.

Aim Deep-diving cetaceans are oceanic species exposed to multiple anthropogenic pressures including high intensity underwater noise, and knowledge of their distribution is crucial to manage their conservation. Due to intrinsic low densities, wide distribution ranges and limited presence at the sea surface, these species are rarely sighted. Pooling data from multiple visual surveys sharing a common line-transect methodology can increase sightings but requires accounting for heterogeneity in protocols and platforms. Location North Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea. Time period 1998 to 2015. Major taxa Ziphiidae; Physeteriidae; Kogiidae. Methods About 1,240,000 km of pooled effort provided 630 sightings of ziphiids, 836 of physeteriids and 106 of kogiids. For each taxon, we built a hierarchical model to estimate the effective strip width depending on observation conditions and survey types. We then modelled relative densities in a generalized additive modelling framework. Geographical predictions were limited to interpolations identified with a gap analysis of environmental space coverage. Results Deeper areas of the North Atlantic gyre were mostly environmental extrapolation in the predictions, thereby highlighting gaps in sampling across the different surveys. For the three species groups, the highest relative densities were predicted along continental slopes, particularly in the western North Atlantic Ocean where the Gulf Stream creates dynamic frontal zones and eddies. Main conclusions Pooling a large number of surveys provided the first basin-wide models of distribution for deep-diving cetaceans, including several data-deficient taxa, across the North Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. These models can help the conservation of elusive and poorly known marine megafauna.

1. The Mediterranean sperm whale sub-population is considered ‘Endangered’ by both ACCOBAMS and the IUCN. Conservation policies require protected species populations to be monitored, but the distribution and movements of sperm whales across the Mediterranean Sea are still poorly understood. 2. To provide insight into sperm whale movements, the photo-identification catalogue from the Strait of Gibraltar was compared with seven other collections: (a) the North Atlantic and Mediterranean Sperm Whale Catalogue (NAMSC), and with photo-identification catalogues from (b) the Alboran Sea, Spain, (c) the Balearic Islands, Spain, (d) the Corso-Provençal Basin, France, (e) the Western Ligurian Sea, Italy, (f) the Tyrrhenian Sea, Italy and (g) the Hellenic Trench, Greece. 3. Of 47 sperm whales identified in the Strait of Gibraltar between 1999 and 2011 a total of 15 animals (32%) were photographically recaptured in other sectors of the western Mediterranean Sea in different years. None of the Strait of Gibraltar sperm whales were resighted in Atlantic waters or in the eastern Mediterranean basin. 4. These results indicate long-range movements of the species throughout the whole western Mediterranean Sea, with a maximum straight-line distance of about 1600 km. The absence of any photographic recaptures between the Mediterranean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean supports the genetic evidence of an isolated sub-population within the Mediterranean Sea. 5. Long-term photo-identification efforts and data sharing between institutions should be further encouraged to provide basic information necessary for the implementation of effective sperm whale conservation measures in the whole basin.

Objectifs : Décrire les lésions placentaires présentes lors de complications périnatales inexpliquées. Étudier les lésions associées aux pathologies maternelles récidivantes, et expliquer un accident per natal à l'aide de l'analyse placentaire. Matériel et méthodes : Notre étude est une analyse descriptive rétrospective d'une série de 124 patientes ayant accouché à l'Hôpital Couple-Enfant de Grenoble entre le 02 Janvier 2009 et le 22 Août 2010. Les données maternelles, néonatales et placentaires ont été recueillies dans les dossiers obstétricaux informatisés. Résultats : Des lésions vasculo-placentaires étaient associées aux pathologies hypertensives, aux RCIU, aux HRP, et aux pathologies récidivantes. Les lésions placentaires associées aux accidents per natals étaient la pigmentation des membranes. Des lésions de chorioamniotite étaient retrouvées chez 8,3% des patientes pour qui il y avait suspicion de chorioamniotite. Aucun type de lésion ne pouvait être corrélé au diabète. Des lésions vasculo-placentaires ainsi que la pigmentation des membranes étaient associées aux métrorragies per-partum. Les placentas associés aux accidents per natals montraient la plupart du temps des lésions d'apparition chronique et antérieures à la période per partum. Conclusion : L'examen du placenta permet de connaître les processus physiopathologiques à l'origine de pathologies périnatales inexpliquées, de confirmer ou infirmer un diagnostic, de mettre en place une stratégie préventive lors de pathologies récidivantes, et d'apporter des preuves objectives d'un point de vue médico-légal.