Open Ocean Migrations and Their Implications for Conservation
By Dani Escontrela, RJD Intern
Over time our understanding of animal migrations and habitats has greatly increased due to advances in tracking technology. Whereas before tags only told us when animals arrived and left certain places, tracks now are able to tell us about the migratory paths they follow. In addition other methods such as ship and plane surveys where limited to where we looked, however with tagged animals we can look were we hadn’t before. Marine animals have developed the ability to move across large ocean expanses, this is due to the fact that many times food resources and breeding sites may be separated by hundreds of kilometers. By understanding what drives these migrations, their seasonality and the paths they take we can help in the conservation and management of many species.