Differences in patterns of habitat utilization of Weddell and crabeater seals along their circumpolar distributions: responding to local conditions

Abstract

Addressing the potential changes in species distribution in response to global change requires evaluating current species-wide patterns of habitat utilization and how these are determined by the local environment. These efforts, however, can be limited by a lack of data on distribution of the species, which are particularly difficult to collect in the case of air-breathing marine predators in high latitude systems. We present here a retrospective analysis on the distributional patterns of both Weddell (Leptonychotes weddellii) and crabeater seals (Lobodon carcinophaga) throughout their circumpolar ranges, using satellite telemetry data obtained over a time span of three decades (1990 to 2010s). Raw Argos tracks (nWeddell = 132; ncrabeater = 115), were filtered using a Switching State Space Model, and the tracking-derived behaviors (transit, foraging) were used to construct localized habitat models based on sea ice and bathymetry derived variables using binary Generalized Additive Mixed Models. We found differences in the effects and significance that environmental covariates had on the distribution at the local scale. The development of local habitat models for the entire range of these species will allow us to understand the ability of each species to cope with the anticipated environmental changes in their habitat