Quantifying thermal cues that initiate mass emigrations in juvenile white sharks

Spurgeon，Emily1; Anderson，James M.1; Liu，Yi2; Barajas，Vianey Leos3; Lowe，Christopher G.1

2022-12-01

10.1038/s41598-022-24377-1

Scientific Reports   Impact Factor & Quartile

2045-2322

2045-2322

While the function of migration varies among species, environmental temperature is known to be one of the most important abiotic variables that drive animal migration; however, quantifying the thresholds and timing of the cues that influence a mass emigration is difficult, often due to lack of monitoring resolution, particularly for large, highly mobile species. We used acoustic telemetry tracking and high-resolution water temperature data over a relatively large spatial scale (5.5 km) to identify and quantify a thermal threshold for mass emigration of juvenile white sharks. Sixteen tagged sharks were observed to initiate a search for warmer water within 10–12 hours of an upwelling event where water temperatures dropped below 14 °C. Eleven sharks traveled ~ 35 km away where they experienced similar cold temperatures before returning to the aggregation site within 24 hours. Five days following the upwelling event, most sharks emigrated from the site for the season. Quantifying movement patterns across different spatial and temporal scales is necessary to understand cues and thresholds influencing animal migration, which may be greatly affected by climate anomalies and climate change, resulting in potential impacts on the dynamics of local prey species, management, and conservation policy and practice.

SCI

English

Others

Science & Technology - Other Topics

Multidisciplinary Sciences

WOS:000885379900024

NATURE PORTFOLIO

2-s2.0-85142248964

Scopus

1.Department of Biological Sciences,California State University,Long Beach,Long Beach,1250 Bellflower Blvd,90840,United States
2.School of Environmental Science and Engineering,Southern University of Science and Technology,Shenzhen,China
3.Department of Statistical Science and School of the Environment,University of Toronto,Toronto,27 King’s College Cir,M5S 1A1,Canada

Spurgeon，Emily,Anderson，James M.,Liu，Yi,et al. Quantifying thermal cues that initiate mass emigrations in juvenile white sharks[J]. Scientific Reports,2022,12(1).

Spurgeon，Emily,Anderson，James M.,Liu，Yi,Barajas，Vianey Leos,&Lowe，Christopher G..(2022).Quantifying thermal cues that initiate mass emigrations in juvenile white sharks.Scientific Reports,12(1).

Spurgeon，Emily,et al."Quantifying thermal cues that initiate mass emigrations in juvenile white sharks".Scientific Reports 12.1(2022).