Article
Environmental Sciences
Joris Laborie, Matthieu Authier, Adrien Chaigne, Karine Delord, Henri Weimerskirch, Christophe Guinet
Summary: Southern elephant seals are important predators and prey consumers in the Southern Ocean, but uncertainties remain about their population sizes. This study used high-resolution satellite imagery to estimate the total populations of elephant seals in the Kerguelen and Crozet Archipelagos. The results showed the reliability of this approach and provided the first estimation of the total southern elephant seal population for both archipelagos. The population trends in the southern Indian Ocean showed marked growth over the last decade, particularly on Crozet where the elephant seal population has more than tripled.
FRONTIERS IN MARINE SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Alexandre Corbeau, Julien Collet, Adrien Pajot, Rocio Joo, Thibaut Thellier, Henri Weimerskirch
Summary: Albatrosses attend fishing boats to feed on fishing discards but are often at risk of accidental bycatch. Populations and sexes differ in their overlap with fisheries due to differences in habitat use, impacting encounter rate of fisheries. Different habitat specialization should be considered for future assessments of risk of bycatch.
MARINE ECOLOGY PROGRESS SERIES
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Mark Andrew Hindell, Clive Reginald McMahon, Christophe Guinet, Rob Harcourt, Ian David Jonsen, Ben Raymond, Dale Maschette
Summary: This study quantified the spatio-temporal use of the Kerguelen Plateau by southern elephant seals and found indication of competition with fisheries for resources. However, the lack of detailed diet information prevents establishing the nature and degree of the possible interactions. Nonetheless, the unique life history and polygynous nature of the seals, along with the absence of measurable effects on seal population growth rates or fishery catch per unit, suggest that any indirect ecological interactions are not significant enough to impact the seal population or fishery.
FRONTIERS IN MARINE SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Anais Dasnon, Karine Delord, Adrien Chaigne, Christophe Barbraud
Summary: The impact of industrial fisheries on marine biodiversity, especially in terms of large pelagic vertebrate fishing bycatch and its effects on seabird populations, is studied in this research. By using multiple methods such as capture-recapture models and population matrix models, the study shows that the implementation of bycatch mitigation measures can improve the survival and breeding success of seabirds.
JOURNAL OF APPLIED ECOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Chongliang Zhang, Yong Chen, Binduo Xu, Ying Xue, Yiping Ren
Summary: Monitoring fishing activities is crucial for marine conservation. The advance of Automatic Identification System (AIS) provides the opportunity to enforce monitoring and promote responsible fisheries. A study in China found that fishing efforts were concentrated along the coastal line and highly influenced by the summer moratorium. Most fishing activities occurred in a limited spatial and temporal scope. Additionally, there has been a shift of fishing efforts from the Eastern China Sea to the coastal areas of south China in response to an extension of the summer moratorium.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2022)
Article
Environmental Studies
Sarah Elizabeth Birchenough, Patrick Arthur Cooper, Antony Charles Jensen
Summary: This study tested the effectiveness of VMS technology in quantifying fishing activity in a near inshore fishery, comprised solely of <12 m vessels. Results showed a decline in overall fishing effort in 2014 and mixed seasonal usage of four defined areas of the Harbour. The study concluded that VMS data can be successfully used on the <12 m inshore sector to quantify patterns of activity and detect overlap with MPA features, aiding evidence-based management.
Article
Fisheries
Nathan J. Bennett, Anna Schuhbauer, Daniel Skerritt, Naazia Ebrahim
Summary: In the fisheries sector, there is a growing emphasis on incorporating social and economic development objectives into policies, management processes, and funding allocations. Monitoring and evaluating these aspects is crucial before, during, and after interventions, but a tailored approach is essential to fit the specific context and objectives of each initiative in order to inform decision-making effectively. Comprehensively designed socio-economic assessment plans are necessary to support various organizations in achieving improved outcomes in fisheries.
FISHERIES RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Luc S. Doucet, Bertrand N. Moine, Jean-Yves Cottin, Jean-Louis Paquette, Christophe Renac, Zheng-Xiang Li
Summary: Carbonatites are mantle-derived rocks associated with rare earth element deposits. Their origin is still a topic of debate. This study focuses on a newly discovered intra-oceanic dolomite tuff unit from the Kerguelen Archipelago, which provides insights into the role of geodynamic processes in deep material recycling and mantle plume composition.
EARTH AND PLANETARY SCIENCE LETTERS
(2023)
Article
Oceanography
Ibrahim Boubekri, Rachid Amara, Abdallah Borhane Djebar, Hubert Mazurek
Summary: Recreational and illegal fishing activities near the proposed Taza marine protected area in Algeria have significant impacts on marine ecosystems and commercial fisheries. The study shows that illegal recreational fishing accounts for about 50% of the commercial fisheries harvest in the area, with strong competition between recreational and professional fishers for resources. The managers of the proposed MPA must address and regulate all fishing activities to benefit marine ecosystems, fishers, and the local population.
OCEAN & COASTAL MANAGEMENT
(2021)
Article
Environmental Studies
Irna Sari, Muhammad Ichsan, Alan White, Syahril Abdul Raup, Sugeng Hari Wisudo
Summary: Small-scale fisheries in Indonesia, which involve 90% of the total number of fishers and provide significant employment for coastal communities, face challenges with catch reporting and monitoring due to the scattered nature of fishers across thousands of islands. Collaborative efforts between the Indonesian Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries and the USAID Sustainable Ecosystems Advanced (SEA) Project have initiated the development of a fishing logbook system to address these challenges. The holistic intervention using sustainable livelihood approach aims to establish a systematic approach for catch monitoring in Indonesian small-scale fisheries, recognizing the tradeoff between an ideal logbook system and an applicable model for this context.
Article
Environmental Studies
John Gilbey, Gary Carvalho, Rita Castilho, Ilaria Coscia, Mark W. Coulson, Geir Dahle, Sofie Derycke, Sara M. Francisco, Sarah J. Helyar, Torild Johansen, Claudia Junge, Kara K. S. Layton, Jann Martinsohn, Iveta Matejusova, Joana I. Robalo, Naiara Rodriguez-Ezpeleta, Goncalo Silva, Ilona Strammer, Anti Vasemagi, Filip A. M. Volckaert
Summary: Effective management of marine fisheries and ecosystem monitoring require analysis of complex information, with increasing legislative demands for good environmental status. Utilizing environmental DNA for data collection presents new cost-effective methods for revolutionizing marine data collection.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Olivier Magand, Helene Angot, Yann Bertrand, Jeroen E. Sonke, Laure Laffont, Solene Duperray, Lea Collignon, Damien Boulanger, Aurelien Dommergue
Summary: The Minamata Convention, a global treaty, aims to reduce mercury emissions and environmental levels to protect human health and the environment. Monitoring atmospheric mercury levels is proposed as a key indicator, but data gaps exist, especially in the Southern Hemisphere. This study presents over a decade of atmospheric mercury monitoring data in the remote southern Indian Ocean to support policy-making and scientific advancements.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Zimeng Su, Gabriela S. Pilo, Stuart Corney, Neil J. Holbrook, Mao Mori, Philippe Ziegler
Summary: Global frequency and intensity of marine heatwaves have been increasing, potentially impacting marine ecosystems and commercial fisheries in the Kerguelen Plateau region. A study found a strong and long-lasting marine heatwave event in the region, with significant correlations with climate variability.
FRONTIERS IN MARINE SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Jessica Meeuwig, Christopher Thompson, John Forrest, Hanna Christ, Tom Letessier, Dirk Meeuwig
Summary: Ocean health is crucial for human prosperity, but is threatened by fisheries exploitation, industrialization, and climate change. Marine protected areas (MPAs) have shown ecological and economic value, with benefits such as biodiversity conservation, fisheries enhancement, and climate resilience. The establishment of large scale MPAs, especially in UK Overseas Territories under the Blue Belt Programme, requires empirical data to assess their effectiveness.
FRONTIERS IN MARINE SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Medicine, Legal
Thomas L. Ter Laak, Erik Emke, Annemieke Benschop, Ton Nabben, Frederic Been
Summary: Drug consumption estimates are important for public health and understanding criminal activities. Wastewater analysis can be used to estimate drug consumption and markets. This study in Amsterdam found an increase in consumption of MDMA, cocaine, amphetamine, and methamphetamine using wastewater analysis and other survey methods.
FORENSIC SCIENCE INTERNATIONAL
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Christophe Barbraud, Karine Delord
Summary: The study showed that in wild populations of long-lived species, immigrants have lower fitness than residents, with fewer breeding attempts, fledglings, breeding success, and recruits. This may be due to asymmetric limiting resources and the competitive ability of dispersers vs. non-dispersers, supporting female-biased dispersal in birds.
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Fabrice Genevois, Christophe Barbraud
Summary: Interspecific feeding refers to the behavior where an adult of one species feeds the young of another species, excluding brood parasitism. This behavior is more commonly observed among passerines in birds, and our report describes interspecific feeding between an adult gentoo penguin and an Adelie penguin chick on the Antarctic Peninsula.
Article
Marine & Freshwater Biology
Karine Delord, Cedric Cotte, Pascal Terray, Charles-Andre Bost, Henri Weimerskirch, Christophe Barbraud
Summary: The study found no significant long-term trend in the body condition of adult northern rockhopper penguins at Amsterdam Island, despite variation between years and sexes influenced by environmental factors. This suggests that the population decline since 1997 is likely not due to environmental conditions during pre-breeding and pre-moult, warranting further research on possible drivers during the breeding season.
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Christophe Barbraud, Baudouin des Monstiers, Adrien Chaigne, Cedric Marteau, Henri Weimerskirch, Karine Delord
Summary: Feral cats have been found to prey on wandering albatrosses at Kerguelen Island, negatively impacting breeding success and population growth rate. A cat control experiment significantly increased breeding success and population growth rate, indicating the importance of implementing feral cat control measures to prevent population decline or local extinction of large albatross species.
BIOLOGICAL INVASIONS
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Maud Queroue, Christophe Barbraud, Frederic Barraquand, Daniel Turek, Karine Delord, Nathan Pacoureau, Olivier Gimenez
Summary: Assessing the effects of climate and interspecific relationships on communities is challenging due to the need to integrate information across multiple biological levels. Research found that climate and predator-prey interactions impact skuas and petrels in different ways, with bottom-up mechanisms being the main drivers of this skua-petrel system.
ECOLOGICAL MONOGRAPHS
(2021)
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Sophie M. Dupont, Christophe Barbraud, Olivier Chastel, Karine Delord, Charline Parenteau, Colette Trouve, Frederic Angelier
Summary: The presence of parents in the nest can reduce offspring stress sensitivity in wild birds by providing protection, delivering meals, improving nutritional status, and potentially offering psychosocial comfort.
HORMONES AND BEHAVIOR
(2021)
Article
Ornithology
Christophe Barbraud, Christian Bavoux, Guy Burneleau
Summary: A study in western France found that the population of Eurasian Scops Owls is increasing, with adult survival linked to autumn rainfall in the Sahel and the winter North Atlantic Oscillation. Younger birds contribute the most to the variance in population growth rate, followed by clutch size, fledging success, and survival of older birds. The research sheds new light on the decline of European Scops Owls and other Afro-Palaearctic bird populations, potentially due to factors like food shortage.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
W. J. Sydeman, D. S. Schoeman, S. A. Thompson, B. A. Hoover, M. Garcia-Reyes, F. Daunt, P. Agnew, T. Anker-Nilssen, C. Barbraud, R. Barrett, P. H. Becker, E. Bell, P. D. Boersma, S. Bouwhuis, B. Cannell, R. J. M. Crawford, P. Dann, K. Delord, G. Elliott, K. E. Erikstad, E. Flint, R. W. Furness, M. P. Harris, S. Hatch, K. Hilwig, J. T. Hinke, J. Jahncke, J. A. Mills, T. K. Reiertsen, H. Renner, R. B. Sherley, C. Surman, G. Taylor, J. A. Thayer, P. N. Trathan, E. Velarde, K. Walker, S. Wanless, P. Warzybok, Y. Watanuki
Summary: Climate change and human activities have profound effects on marine ecosystem productivity, particularly impacting seabird breeding success, with stronger effects on fish-eating species in the northern hemisphere; hence, ocean management at hemispheric scales and targeted recovery plans are necessary. In the southern hemisphere, lower changes in seabird productivity provide opportunities for strategic management approaches like establishing large marine protected areas to sustain food webs and predator productivity.
Article
Biology
Naouel Benharzallah, Abdelkrim Si Bachir, Christophe Barbraud
Summary: The study aimed to examine the impact of nest site characteristics and food supplementation from rubbish dumps on the reproductive parameters of white storks. The results showed that white storks breeding near rubbish dumps had larger nest sizes, hatched more chicks, and raised more fledglings compared to those breeding far from rubbish dumps. The study also found that nest size was positively correlated with nest surface area, and breeding success was lower for storks nesting on electricity poles compared to those nesting in trees.
Article
Evolutionary Biology
Lea Lorrain-Soligon, Frederic Robin, Vincent Lelong, Marko Jankovic, Christophe Barbraud, Frakois Brischoux
Summary: Salinization caused by sea-level rise and marine submersions has significant impacts on coastal ecosystems, particularly on the biodiversity of coastal wetlands. This study investigated the effects of environmental salinity on population structure and individual characteristics of the western spadefoot toad in two populations along the French Atlantic coast. The distance to the shoreline was found to strongly influence salt exposure on a small spatial scale, and certain variables showed consistent responses across sites, while others displayed site-specific responses, potentially related to breeding site salinity.
BIOLOGICAL JOURNAL OF THE LINNEAN SOCIETY
(2022)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Christophe Barbraud, Karine Delord, Fabrice Le Bouard, Roald Harivel, Jeremie Demay, Adrien Chaigne, Thierry Micol
Summary: Twenty years after the successful eradication of invasive mammals on Saint-Paul Island, seabird populations significantly increased, with seven new seabird species colonizing the island. Species vulnerable to rat predation, such as prions, great-winged petrel, white-bellied storm petrel, and Antarctic tern, showed the highest population growth rates. These findings highlight the importance of invasive mammal eradication on islands.
JOURNAL FOR NATURE CONSERVATION
(2021)
Article
Marine & Freshwater Biology
Maria Laranjeiro, Marc Farre, Richard A. Phillips, Petra Quillfeldt, Francesco Bonadonna, Charlene Gemard, Maximiliano Daigre, Cristian G. Suazo, Christophe Barbraud, Joan Navarro
Summary: Morphological variation in bill shape among planktivorous petrels (Antarctic prion, blue petrel, and thin-billed prion) is primarily driven by diet and potential niche differentiation. Antarctic prions have robust and shorter bills for filtering small prey, while blue petrels and thin-billed prions have narrower and longer bills for catching larger prey. Geographic variation in bill shape, specifically longer and narrower bills in Kerguelen colonies, may be associated with diet differences. Prey availability and diversity are important factors influencing bill morphology.
Article
Ecology
Aurore Ponchon, Amandine Gamble, Jeremy Tornos, Karine Delord, Christophe Barbraud, Justin M. J. Travis, Henri Weimerskirch, Thierry Boulinier
Summary: Breeding failure is expected to lead to behavioral changes in central place foragers, with individuals adjusting their behavior and potentially using different foraging areas to reduce competition with successful breeders. A study on Indian yellow-nosed albatrosses showed that failed breeders exhibited similar at-sea foraging behavior as successful breeders, although there was partial spatial segregation in their habitat use. This highlights the importance of considering individual breeding status when studying seabird behavior and habitat use.
MARINE ECOLOGY PROGRESS SERIES
(2021)
Article
Environmental Studies
Pamela E. Michael, Chris Wilcox, Christophe Barbraud, Karine Delord, Michael Sumner, Henri Weimerskirch
Summary: Managing marine systems is challenging due to the high mobility of many marine species, with bycatch being one of the threats. The traditional characterization of bycatch overlooks the long-term impacts on the population, while incorporating an estimate of reproductive value (RV) serves as a complementary tool. Dynamic bycatch enforcement is theoretically more efficient than static enforcement, but the difference diminishes as the population-wide RV subject to enforcement increases.
Article
Environmental Studies
Karine Delord, Timothee Poupart, Nicolas Gasco, Henri Weimerskirch, Christophe Barbraud
Summary: Albatrosses, particularly the Amsterdam albatross, are globally threatened by fisheries bycatch. This study reveals the first evidence of an Amsterdam albatross wandering outside the Indian Ocean, in the Pacific Ocean, raising concerns about overlaps with fisheries and conservation issues. The research provides new insights and guidance for the conservation of this endangered species.
