Kessel Steven Thomas, Elamin Nasreldin Alhasan, Yurkowski David James, Chekchak Tarik, Walter Ryan Patrick, Klaus Rebecca, Hill Graham, Hussey Nigel Edward
Daniel P. Haerther Center for Conservation and Research, John G. Shedd Aquarium, Chicago IL, United States of America.
Equipe Cousteau, Paris, France.
PLoS One. 2017 Oct 25;12(10):e0185419. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0185419. eCollection 2017.
A large reef manta ray (Manta alfredi) aggregation has been observed off the north Sudanese Red Sea coast since the 1950s. Sightings have been predominantly within the boundaries of a marine protected area (MPA), which was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in July 2016. Contrasting economic development trajectories have been proposed for the area (small-scale ecotourism and large-scale island development). To examine space-use, Wildlife Computers® SPOT 5 tags were secured to three manta rays. A two-state switching Bayesian state space model (BSSM), that allowed movement parameters to switch between resident and travelling, was fit to the recorded locations, and 50% and 95% kernel utilization distributions (KUD) home ranges calculated. A total of 682 BSSM locations were recorded between 30 October 2012 and 6 November 2013. Of these, 98.5% fell within the MPA boundaries; 99.5% for manta 1, 91.5% for manta 2, and 100% for manta 3. The BSSM identified that all three mantas were resident during 99% of transmissions, with 50% and 95% KUD home ranges falling mainly within the MPA boundaries. For all three mantas combined (88.4%), and all individuals (manta 1-92.4%, manta 2-64.9%, manta 3-91.9%), the majority of locations occurred within 15 km of the proposed large-scale island development. Results indicated that the MPA boundaries are spatially appropriate for manta rays in the region, however, a close association to the proposed large-scale development highlights the potential threat of disruption. Conversely, the focused nature of spatial use highlights the potential for reliable ecotourism opportunities.
自20世纪50年代以来，在苏丹红海海岸北部海域观察到大量礁蝠鲼（Manta alfredi）聚集。目击主要发生在一个海洋保护区（MPA）范围内，该保护区于2016年7月被指定为联合国教科文组织世界遗产地。针对该地区提出了截然不同的经济发展轨迹（小规模生态旅游和大规模岛屿开发）。为了研究空间利用情况，将Wildlife Computers® SPOT 5标签固定在三只蝠鲼身上。一个双态切换贝叶斯状态空间模型（BSSM），该模型允许运动参数在定居和移动之间切换，用于拟合记录的位置，并计算50%和95%核利用分布（KUD）的家域范围。在2012年10月30日至2013年11月6日期间，共记录了682个BSSM位置。其中，98.5%落在MPA边界内；蝠鲼1为99.5%，蝠鲼2为91.5%，蝠鲼3为100%。BSSM确定，在99%的传输过程中，所有三只蝠鲼均为定居状态，50%和95%的KUD家域范围主要落在MPA边界内。对于所有三只蝠鲼（88.4%）以及所有个体（蝠鲼1为92.4%，蝠鲼2为64.9%，蝠鲼3为91.9%）而言，大多数位置出现在拟议的大规模岛屿开发区域15公里范围内。结果表明，MPA边界在空间上适合该地区的蝠鲼，然而，与拟议的大规模开发项目密切相关凸显了受到干扰的潜在威胁。相反，空间利用的集中性质突出了可靠生态旅游机会的潜力。
