Space use patterns of sharks in relation to boat activity in an urbanized coastal waterway

Mitchell J Rider; Oliver S Kirsebom; Austin J Gallagher; Erica Staaterman; Jerald S Ault; Christopher R Sasso; Tom Jackson; Joan A Browder; Neil Hammerschlag

doi:10.1016/j.marenvres.2021.105489

Space use patterns of sharks in relation to boat activity in an urbanized coastal waterway

Mar Environ Res. 2021 Dec:172:105489. doi: 10.1016/j.marenvres.2021.105489. Epub 2021 Sep 30.

Authors

Mitchell J Rider¹, Oliver S Kirsebom², Austin J Gallagher³, Erica Staaterman³, Jerald S Ault⁴, Christopher R Sasso⁵, Tom Jackson⁵, Joan A Browder⁵, Neil Hammerschlag⁶

Affiliations

¹ Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, University of Miami, 4600 Rickenbacker Cswy, Miami, FL, 33149, USA. Electronic address: mitchell.rider@rsmas.miami.edu.
² Institute for Big Data Analytics, Dalhousie University, 6299 South St, Halifax, Nova Scotia, B3H 4R2, Canada.
³ Beneth the Waves, PO Box 126, Herndon, VA, 20172, USA.
⁴ Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, University of Miami, 4600 Rickenbacker Cswy, Miami, FL, 33149, USA.
⁵ National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Marine Fisheries Service, Southeast Fisheries Science Center, 75 Virginia Beach Dr, Miami, FL, 33149, USA.
⁶ Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, University of Miami, 4600 Rickenbacker Cswy, Miami, FL, 33149, USA; Leonard & Jayne Abess Center for Ecosystem Science and Policy, University of Miami, 1365 Memorial Dr, Coral Gables, Florida, 33146, USA.

PMID: 34619503
DOI: 10.1016/j.marenvres.2021.105489

Abstract

Aquatic ecosystems face numerous anthropogenic threats associated with coastal urbanization, with boat activity being among the most prevalent. The present study aimed to evaluate a potential relationship between boat activity and shark space use in Biscayne Bay, Florida (USA), a coastal waterway exposed to high levels of boating. Spatiotemporal patterns in boat density and traffic were determined from aerial surveys and underwater acoustic recorders, respectively. These data were then compared with residency patterns of bull (Carcharhinus leucas), nurse (Ginglymostoma cirratum) and great hammerhead (Sphyrna mokarran) sharks quantified through passive acoustic telemetry. Results were mixed, with no detectable relationship between boat density and shark residency for any of the species. Hourly presence of G. cirratum decreased with increasing boat traffic, a relationship not seen in the other two species. Explanations for these results include habituation of sharks to the high levels of chronic boat activity in the study area and interspecific differences in hearing sensitivity.

Keywords: Acoustic telemetry; Coastal waters; Elasmobranch; Global change; Movement ecology; Urbanization; Vessel traffic.

MeSH terms

Animals
Ecosystem
Florida
Sharks*
Ships
Telemetry