Vertical niche overlap by two ocean giants with similar diets: Ocean sunfish and leatherback turtles

Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology

Volumn 370, Issue 1-2, 2009, Pages 134-143

  Hays, Graeme C ^a   Farquhar, Michael R ^b   Luschi, Paolo ^c   Teo, Steven L H ^d   Thys, Tierney M ^e  

^a SWANSEA UNIVERSITY   (United Kingdom)

^b Two Oceans Aquarium   (South Africa)

^c UNIVERSITY OF PISA   (Italy)

^d UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA   (United States)

^e Ocean Sunfish Research and Tagging Program   (United States)

Author keywords

Argos; Diving; Jellyfish; PAT; Plankton; Pop off tag; Vertical movements

Indexed keywords

DIET; DIVING BEHAVIOR; FORAGING BEHAVIOR; JELLYFISH; MOVEMENT; NICHE BREADTH; NICHE OVERLAP; RANGE SIZE; TAGGING; TELEOST; TURTLE; VERTICAL DISTRIBUTION; ZOOPLANKTON;

AFRICA; SOUTH AFRICA; SOUTHERN AFRICA; SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA;

DERMOCHELYIDAE; DERMOCHELYS CORIACEA; MOLA MOLA; MOLIDAE; SCYPHOZOA; TESTUDINES;

EID: 59649109752     PISSN: 00220981     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1016/j.jembe.2008.12.009     Document Type: Article

References (45)

1. Andersen V., Sardou J., and Nival P. The diel vertical migrations and vertical distributions of zooplankton and micronekton in the northwestern Mediterranean Sea. 2. Siphonophores, hydromedusae and pyrosomids. Journal of Plankton Research 14 (1992) 1155-1169
2. Andersen V., Sardou J., and Gasser B. Macroplankton and micronekton in the northeast tropical Atlantic: abundance, community composition and vertical distribution in relation to different trophic environments. Deep-Sea Research Part I 44 (1997) 193-222
3. Bjorndal K.A. Foraging ecology and nutrition of sea turtles. In: Lutz P.L., and Musick J.A. (Eds). The Biology of Sea Turtles (1997), CRC press 199-231
4. Block B.A., Teo S.L.H., Walli A., Boustany A., Stokesbury M.J.W., Farwell C.J., Weng K.C., Dewar H., and Williams T.D. Electronic tagging and population structure of Atlantic bluefin tuna. Nature 434 (2005) 1121-1127
5. Bonfil R., Meÿer M., Scholl M.C., Johnson R., O'Brien S., Oosthuizen H., Swanson S., Kotze D., and Paterson M. Transoceanic migration, spatial dynamics, and population linkages of white sharks. Nature 310 (2005) 100-103
6. Boyer T.P., Antonov J.I., Garcia H.E., Johnson D.R., Locarnini R.A., Mishonov A.V., Pitcher M.T., Baranova O.K., and Smolyar I.V. World ocean database 2005. In: Levitus S. (Ed). NOAA Atlas NESDIS vol. 60 (2006), U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C 190 pp., DVDs
7. Bradshaw C.J.A., McMahon C.R., and Hays G.C. Behavioral inference of diving metabolic rate in free-ranging leatherback turtles. Physiological and Biochemical Zoology 80 (2007) 209-219
8. Bradshaw C.J.A., Sims D.W., and Hays G.C. Measurement error causes scale-dependent threshold erosion of biological signals in animal movement data. Ecological Applications 17 (2007) 628-638
9. Brierley A.S., Axelsen B.E., Buecher E., Sparks C.A.J., Boyer H., and Gibbons M.J. Acoustic observations of jellyfish in the Namibian Benguela. Marine Ecology Progress Series 210 (2001) 55-66
10. Buskey E.J., Baker K.S., Smith R.C., and Swift E. Photosensitivity of the oceanic copepods Pleuromamma gracilis and Pleuromamma xiphias and its relationship to light penetration and daytime depth distribution. Marine Ecology Progress Series 55 (1989) 207-216
11. Cartamil D.P., and Lowe C.G. Diel movement patterns of ocean sunfish Mola mola off southern California. Marine Ecology-Progress Series 266 (2004) 245-255
12. Dagorn L., Bach P., and Josse E. Movement patterns of large bigeye tuna (Thunnus obesus) in the open ocean, determined using ultrasonic telemetry. Marine Biology 136 (2000) 361-371
13. Doyle T.K., Houghton J.D.R., McDevitt R., Davenport J., and Hays G.C. The energy density of jellyfish: estimates from bomb-calorimetry and proximate-composition. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 343 (2007) 239-252
14. Doyle T.K., Haas H.D., Cotton D., Dorschel B., Cummins V., Houghton J.D.R., Davenport J., and Hays G.C. Widespread occurrence of the jellyfish Pelagia noctiluca in Irish coastal and shelf waters. Journal of Plankton Research 30 (2008) 963-968
15. Duverge P.L., Jones G., Rydell J., and Ransome R.D. Functional significance of emergence timing in bats. Ecography 23 (2002) 32-40
16. Eckert S.A., Eckert K.L., Ponganis P., and Kooyman G.L. Diving and foraging behavior of leatherback sea turtles (Dermochelys coriacea). Canadian Journal of Zoology 67 (1989) 2834-2840
17. Freedman J.A., and Noakes D.L.G. Why are there no really big bony fishes? A point-of-view on maximum body size in teleosts and elasmobranchs. Reviews in Fish Biology and Fisheries 12 (2002) 403-416
18. Georges J.-Y., and Fossette S. Estimating body mass in leatherback turtles Dermochelys coriacea. Marine Ecology Progress Series 318 (2006) 255-262
19. Hays G.C. Ontogenetic and seasonal variation in the diel vertical migration of the copepods Metridia lucens and Metridia longa. Limnology & Oceanography 40 (1995) 1461-1465
20. Hays G.C. A review of the adaptive significance and ecosystem consequences of zooplankton diel vertical migrations. Hydrobiologia 503 (2003) 163-170
21. Hays G.C. Sea turtles: a review of some key recent discoveries and remaining questions. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 356 (2008) 1-7 10.1016/j.jembe.2007.12.016
22. Hays G.C., Hobson V.J., Metcalfe J.D., Righton D., and Sims D.W. Flexible foraging movements of leatherback turtles across the North Atlantic Ocean. Ecology 87 (2006) 2647-2656
23. Heithaus M.R., Wirsing A.J., Dill L.M., and Heithaus L.I. Long-term movements of tiger sharks satellite-tagged in Shark Bay, Western Australia. Marine Biology 151 (2007) 1455-1461
24. Hindell M. To breathe or not to breathe: optimal strategies for finding prey in a dark, three-dimensional environment. Journal of Animal Ecology 5 (2008) 847-849
25. Holland K.N., Brill R.W., Chang R.K.C., Sibert J.R., and Fournier D.A. Physiological and behavioral thermoregulation in bigeye tuna (Thunnus obesus). Nature 358 (1992) 410-412
26. Houghton J.D.R., Doyle T.K., Wilson M.W., Davenport J., and Hays G.C. Jellyfish aggregations and leatherback turtle foraging patterns in a temperate coastal environment. Ecology 87 (2006) 1967-1972
27. Houghton J.D.R., Doyle T.K., Davenport J., Wilson R.P., and Hays G.C. The role of infrequent and extraordinary deep dives in leatherback turtles (Dermochelys coriacea). Journal of Experimental Biology 211 (2008) 2566-2575 10.1242/jeb.020065
28. Lambardi P., Lutjeharms J.R.E., Mencacci R., Hays G.C., and Luschi P. Influence of ocean currents on long-distance movement of leatherback sea turtles in the Southwest Indian Ocean. Marine Ecology Progress Series 353 (2008) 289-301
29. Lewison R.L., Freeman S.A., and Crowder L.B. Quantifying the effects of fisheries on threatened species: the impact of pelagic longlines on loggerhead and leatherback sea turtles. Ecology Letters 7 (2004) 221-231
30. Luschi P., Lutjeharms J.R.E., Lambardi R., Mencacci R., Hughes G.R., and Hays G.C. A review of migratory behaviour of sea turtles off Southeastern Africa. South African Journal of Science 102 (2006) 51-58
31. Lynam C.P., Gibbons M.J., Axelsen B.E., Sparks C.A.J., Coetzee J., Heywood B.G., and Brierley A.S. Jellyfish overtake fish in a heavily fished ecosystem. Current Biology 16 (2006) R492-R493
32. McMahon C.R., and Hays G.C. Thermal niche, large scale movements and implications of climate change for a critically endangered marine vertebrate. Global Change Biology 12 (2006) 1330-1338
33. Myers A.E., and Hays G.C. Do leatherback turtles (Dermochelys coriacea) forage during the breeding season? A combination of novel and traditional data logging devices provide new insights. Marine Ecology Progress Series 322 (2006) 259-267
34. Pauly D., and Maclean J. In a Perfect Ocean: The State of Fisheries and Ecosystems in the North Atlantic Ocean (State of the World's Oceans Series) (2003), Island Press 175 pp., ISBN 1559633247, 9781559633246
35. Petersen S. Initial bycatch assessment: South Africa's domestic longline fisher, 2000-2003. Domestic pelagic longline fishery: Bycatch Report 2000-2003 (2005), BirdLife South Africa 45 pp.
36. Petersen S., and McDonell Z. A bycatch assessment of the cape horse mackerel Trachurus trachurus capensis mid-water trawl fishery off South Africa. Birdlife/WWF Responsible Fisheries Programme Report 2002-2005 (2007) 30 pp
37. Purcell J.E., Uye S., and Lo W.-T. Anthropogenic causes of jellyfish blooms and their direct consequences for humans: a review. Marine Ecology Progress Series 350 (2007) 153-174
38. Sale A., Luschi P., Mencacci R., Lambardi P., Hughes G.R., Hays G.C., Benvenuti S., and Papi F. Long-term monitoring of leatherback turtle diving behaviour during oceanic movements. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 328 (2006) 197-210
39. Shillinger G.L., Palacios D.M., Bailey H., Bograd S.J., Swithenbank A.M., Gaspar P., Wallace B.P., Spotila J.R., Paladino F.V., Piedra R., Eckert S.A., and Block B.A. Persistent leatherback turtle migrations present opportunities for conservation. PLoS Biology 6 7 (2008) e171 10.1371/journal.pbio.0060171
40. Silvani L., Gazo M., and Aguilar A. Spanish driftnet fishing and incidental catches in the western Mediterranean. Biological Conservation 90 (1999) 79-85
41. Sims D.W., Southall E.J., Humphries N.E., Hays G.C., Bradshaw C.J.A., Pitchford J.W., James A., Ahmed M.Z., Brierley A.S., Hindell M.A., Morritt D., Musyl M.K., Righton D., Shepard E.L.C., Wearmouth V.J., Wilson R.P., Witt M.J., and Metcalfe J.D. Scaling laws of marine predator search behaviour. Nature 451 (2008) 1098-1102 10.1038/nature06518
42. Speakman J.R., Rydell J., Webb P.I., Hayes J.P., Hays G.C., Hulbert I.A.R., and McDevitt R.M. Activity patterns of insectivorous bats and birds in northern Scandinavia (69°N), during continuous midsummer daylight. Oikos 88 (2000) 75-86
43. Teo S.L.H., Boustany A., Blackwell S., Walli A., Weng K.C., and Block B.A. Validation of geolocation estimates based on light level and sea surface temperature electronic tags. Marine Ecology Progress Series 283 (2004) 81-98
44. Thys T. Swimming Heads. Natural History 103 (1994) 36-39
45. Watanabe Y., and Sato K. Functional dorsoventral symmetry in Relation to lift-based swimming in the ocean sunfish Mola mola. PLoS ONE 3 10 (2008) e3446 10.1371/journal.pone.0003446