Ecological drivers of movement for two sympatric marine predators in the California current large marine ecosystem.

ABSTRACT:

Background

An animal's movement reflects behavioral decisions made to address ecological needs; specifically, that movement will become less directional in regions with high prey availability, indicating foraging behavior. In the marine realm, animal behavior occurs below the sea surface and is difficult to observe. We used an extensive satellite tagging dataset to explore how physical and biological habitat characteristics influence blue (Balaenoptera musculus) and fin (B. physalus) whale movement and foraging behavior in the California Current Ecosystem across four known bioregions.

Methods

We fitted movement models to 14 years of blue whale satellite tracking data and 13 years of fin whale data to characterize their movement persistence, with higher move persistence value

SUBMITTER: Irvine LM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11917063 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature