ACUSQUAT Project: Acoustic behavioural monitoring of the Angelshark (Squatina squatina) in critical conservation areas

Abstract

Event Abstract Back to Event ACUSQUAT Project: Acoustic behavioural monitoring of the Angelshark (Squatina squatina) in critical conservation areas Diego G. Campos1*, David Jiménez-Alvarado2, José Juan Castro-Hernández2, Airam Guerra-Marrero2, Jorge Cabrera-Gámez2 and Antonio C. Domínguez-Brito2 1 Other, Spain 2 University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain The Angelshark (Squatina squatina) is a critically endangered species with a geographic distribution currently reduced to the Canary Islands and with punctual sightings along the Mediterranean and Wales (UK) coasts, primarily due to overfishing. This benthic shark uses sheltered beaches of the islands as reproduction and nursery areas, thus tourism development represents another major threat to its survival. During this study, 11 females and 4 males of Angelshark have been tagged using acoustic transmitters, in order to track their circadian routines and to study their movements around these critical areas, that are also vital for the tourism industry of the Archipelago, particularly during mating season for adults and along the first year of life, when these beaches are used as nursery areas for juveniles. Results, combined with data obtained from visual census and citizen sighting reports, are being used to promote Use and Management Plans in beaches considered as critical conservation areas for the species, and make them compatible with tourism. The tracking methodology has been based on the use of Vemco VR2W, VR2C-Mini and VMT receivers, as well as Vemco V9 coded transmitters. An initial acoustic telemetry network was implemented from October 2018 with 3 fixed receivers (VR2W and VMT) installed on both ends and in the middle part of the study area, and a third receiver (VR2C-Mini) used from a boat to “comb” the area on punctual occasions. The first results show that this kind of tags are very appropriate for tracking benthic elasmobranchs like the Angelshark in restricted coastal areas, with an average detection range of 300-700m depending on the morphology and bathymetry of the area. In the Canary Islands, adults and juveniles are found very close to the shore in beaches and ports that support intense human activity, thus negative interactions are frequent and need to be addressed, particularly with this threatened species. Acknowledgements Fundación Biodiversidad Keywords: Angelshark, acoustic telemetry, critical conservation areas, Tourism development, Canary Islands Conference: XX Iberian Symposium on Marine Biology Studies (SIEBM XX) , Braga, Portugal, 9 Sep - 12 Sep, 2019. Presentation Type: Poster Presentation Topic: Ecology, Biodiversity and Vulnerable Ecosystems Citation: Campos DG, Jiménez-Alvarado D, Castro-Hernández J, Guerra-Marrero A, Cabrera-Gámez J and Domínguez-Brito AC (2019). ACUSQUAT Project: Acoustic behavioural monitoring of the Angelshark (Squatina squatina) in critical conservation areas. Front. Mar. Sci. Conference Abstract: XX Iberian Symposium on Marine Biology Studies (SIEBM XX) . doi: 10.3389/conf.fmars.2019.08.00115 Copyright: The abstracts in this collection have not been subject to any Frontiers peer review or checks, and are not endorsed by Frontiers. They are made available through the Frontiers publishing platform as a service to conference organizers and presenters. The copyright in the individual abstracts is owned by the author of each abstract or his/her employer unless otherwise stated. Each abstract, as well as the collection of abstracts, are published under a Creative Commons CC-BY 4.0 (attribution) licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) and may thus be reproduced, translated, adapted and be the subject of derivative works provided the authors and Frontiers are attributed. For Frontiers’ terms and conditions please see https://www.frontiersin.org/legal/terms-and-conditions. Received: 27 Jun 2019; Published Online: 27 Sep 2019. * Correspondence: Mx. Diego G Campos, Other, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain, diego.gamo@fpct.ulpgc.es Login Required This action requires you to be registered with Frontiers and logged in. To register or login click here. Abstract Info Abstract The Authors in Frontiers Diego G Campos David Jiménez-Alvarado José Juan Castro-Hernández Airam Guerra-Marrero Jorge Cabrera-Gámez Antonio C Domínguez-Brito Google Diego G Campos David Jiménez-Alvarado José Juan Castro-Hernández Airam Guerra-Marrero Jorge Cabrera-Gámez Antonio C Domínguez-Brito Google Scholar Diego G Campos David Jiménez-Alvarado José Juan Castro-Hernández Airam Guerra-Marrero Jorge Cabrera-Gámez Antonio C Domínguez-Brito PubMed Diego G Campos David Jiménez-Alvarado José Juan Castro-Hernández Airam Guerra-Marrero Jorge Cabrera-Gámez Antonio C Domínguez-Brito Related Article in Frontiers Google Scholar PubMed Abstract Close Back to top Javascript is disabled. Please enable Javascript in your browser settings in order to see all the content on this page.