ORCID Profile
0000-0003-1032-647X
Current Organisations
Instituto Español de Oceanografía Centro Oceanográfico de Vigo
,
Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas
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Publisher: Wiley
Date: 10-12-2019
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 28-11-2018
DOI: 10.1111/GEB.12850
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 04-08-2021
DOI: 10.1371/JOURNAL.PONE.0255667
Abstract: In habitat modelling, environmental variables are assumed to be proxies of lower trophic levels distribution and by extension, of marine top predator distributions. More proximal variables, such as potential prey fields, could refine relationships between top predator distributions and their environment. In situ data on prey distributions are not available over large spatial scales but, a numerical model, the Spatial Ecosystem And POpulation DYnamics Model (SEAPODYM), provides simulations of the biomass and production of zooplankton and six functional groups of micronekton at the global scale. Here, we explored whether generalised additive models fitted to simulated prey distribution data better predicted deep- er densities (here beaked whales Ziphiidae and sperm whales Physeter macrocephalus ) than models fitted to environmental variables. We assessed whether the combination of environmental and prey distribution data would further improve model fit by comparing their explanatory power. For both taxa, results were suggestive of a preference for habitats associated with topographic features and thermal fronts but also for habitats with an extended euphotic zone and with large prey of the lower mesopelagic layer. For beaked whales, no SEAPODYM variable was selected in the best model that combined the two types of variables, possibly because SEAPODYM does not accurately simulate the organisms on which beaked whales feed on. For sperm whales, the increase model performance was only marginal. SEAPODYM outputs were at best weakly correlated with sightings of deep- ing cetaceans, suggesting SEAPODYM may not accurately predict the prey fields of these taxa. This study was a first investigation and mostly highlighted the importance of the physiographic variables to understand mechanisms that influence the distribution of deep- ing cetaceans. A more systematic use of SEAPODYM could allow to better define the limits of its use and a development of the model that would simulate larger prey beyond 1,000 m would probably better characterise the prey of deep- ing cetaceans.
Location: No location found
Location: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Location: Spain
No related grants have been discovered for Camilo Saavedra.