Metadata record for data from ASAC Project 2722 See the link below for public details on this project. Public The Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) aims to manage the harvesting of living resources in the Southern Ocean in a manner that is sustainable to the harvested species, dependent species and ecosystem processes. The krill fishery is one of the major fisheries in the Southern Ocean. Application of CCAMLR's policy in management of the krill fishery requires sound scientific information on both krill and krill-dependent (predator) species. This program aims to provide the scientific information on krill predators required by CCAMLR for sustainable management of the krill fishery through research, survey and monitoring activities. Taken from the 2009-2010 Progress Report: Project objectives: The Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) aims to manage the harvesting of living resources in the Southern Ocean in a manner that is sustainable to the harvested species, dependent species and ecosystem processes. The krill fishery is one of the major fisheries in the Southern Ocean. Application of CCAMLR's policy to management of the krill fishery requires sound scientific information on both krill and krill-dependent (predator) species. This program of work aims broadly to provide the scientific information on krill predators required by CCAMLR for sustainable management of the krill fishery in the Australian Antarctic Territory against a background of other impacts such as climate change, and compliments separate SOE projects aimed at krill itself. This program is related to the previous multi-year project number 2205 (Adelie penguin research and monitoring in support of the CCAMLR Ecosystem Monitoring Project (CEMP)) but recognises and addresses recent developments in CCAMLR that include (i) the current development of a krill management procedure, (ii) a review of outputs from past CEMP work and recognition of the likely need to re-design CEMP to meet the needs of the new krill management procedure, and (iii) the need to estimate predator consumption of krill as part of the krill management procedure. Although the previous project 2205 focussed on Adelie penguins in the Mawson region exclusively, this new program will include consideration of additional species and regions to allow improvements in both ecosystem monitoring and estimation of krill consumption. The program was approved in 2005 as a multi-year ASAC project with four major sub-programs or projects which have strong methodological and practical cross-linkages and overlap. The projects and their objectives are: (1) Development of cost-effective methods for surveying and monitoring predator populations at the large spatial scales required by CCAMLR, (2) Estimation of the abundance of krill predators in CCAMLR Statistical Areas 58.4.1 and 58.4.2 (which together span the width of the Australian Antarctic Territory), (3) Assessment of spatio-temporal variability in predator performance parameters to enable the design of an effective and efficient monitoring program, and to examine metapopulation dynamics (4) Continuation of selected aspects of project 2205 to (i) improve estimates and understanding of temporal variability and population dynamics and (ii) continue the application of CEMP. We propose to continue these projects in 2008/09 and commence some additional projects. Projects (1) and (2) will be expanded beyond Adelie penguins to include some species of flying seabirds. Additional work related to the AAD's management of the Rookery Islands Specially Protected Area is proposed which would be undertaken in collaboration with the AADs environmental policy section, and aims to assess the status of the Southern Giant Petrel. It would be undertaken in conjunction with planned surveys of Adelie penguins and some flying seabird species in the Rookery Islands (project 2). Details of the work will be outlined in a separate proposal submitted by the AAD environmental policy section. A additional project is related to an IPY approved project focussing on Adelie penguins as indicators in the Southern Ocean. The objective of this new project is to co-ordinate some aspects of the work of Adelie penguin researchers around Antarctica to improve understanding of broad-scale processes in the Southern Ocean. A planning meeting in May 2007 had to be postponed until September 2007 and consequently it is not yet possible to outline the details of this project. We will provide project details as soon as possible after the September 2007 meeting and request that a late submission be accepted for this project. Progress against objectives: (1) Implementation and further development of cost-effective methods for surveying and monitoring predator populations at the large spatial scales required by CCAMLR. Camera technology has been developed and is now being used to monitor Adelie penguin populations on several islands in the Mawson and Davis areas. Methods for cost-effective development of regional population size have also been developed and applied in the Mawson and Davis areas. Flying seabirds have been incorporated in the monitoring program by developing and implementing monitoring methods of snow petrel on Bechervaise Island. (2) Estimation of the abundance of krill predators in CCAMLR Statistical Areas 58.4.1 and 58.4.2 (which together span the width of the Australian Antarctic Territory). Aerial surveys were undertaken of Adelie penguin populations in the Vestfold Hills and Rauers Islands. Reconnaissance surveys of Adelie penguin distribution were conducted by the CASA aircraft between Casey and Mirny. Ground surveys of Adelie penguin populations were undertaken in the Mawson region (3) Assessment of spatio-temporal variability in predator performance parameters to enable the design of an effective and efficient monitoring program, and to examine metapopulation dynamics. Population surveys and the use of cameras at multiple sites in the Mawson area are providing data on Adelie penguin meta-population dynamics. (4) Continuation of selected aspects of project 2205 to (i) improve estimates and understanding of temporal variability and population dynamics and (ii) continue the application of CEMP. Measurement of Adelie penguin population size, foraging trip duration, breeding success and survival at Bechervaise Island continued in 2009/10 (5) Assessment of the winter foraging distribution of Adelie penguins. Satellite trackers were successfully deployed on 15 fledgling Adelie penguins.

Metadata record for data from ASAC Project 2794 See the link below for public details on this project. Public: This study will use innovative technology to measure the winter spatial foraging patterns and net energy gain of adult female elephant seals (and potentially Weddell seals), while simultaneously providing high-resolution data on the physical nature of the water column in which the seals live. By combining biological and physical data with satellite derived sea-ice information, this study will improve our understanding of predator foraging success (and therefore mechanisms which regulate population trajectories) and provide physical oceanographers with fundamental data on the importance mechanisms that determine the winter ice and bottom water formation that under-pin the Antarctic marine ecosystem. Project objectives: The extent and nature of Antarctic winter sea ice is thought to have profound impacts on biological productivity, the recruitment of Antarctic krill, and the flow-on effects through the Antarctic marine food web. 1. Winter sea-ice formation is also hypothesised to play an important, yet highly-variable role in ocean circulation patterns through the production of cold, dense winter bottom water. 2. The mechanisms determining the inter-annual variation in winter ice formation are poorly understood, as are the complex feedback processes involved, but they are nonetheless recognised as being vulnerable to human-induced climate change. 3. Given the dynamically-linked nature of winter-ice and biological productivity, long-term climatic changes will have broad scale influences on Antarctic biota. This study will use innovative technological developments to quantify the response of one of the major Antarctic marine predators, the southern elephant seal (Mirounga leonina), to inter-annual variation in winter ice conditions. We will measure the winter spatial foraging patterns and net energy gain of adult female elephant seals while simultaneously providing high-resolution data on the physical nature of the water column in which the seals are living. The combination of these biological and physical data with satellite-derived sea-ice information will relate variation in the winter-ice to broad scale biological production through the foraging success (maternal investment and therefore demographic performance) of a top Antarctic marine predator, as well as providing physical oceanographers with fundamental data on the important mechanisms that determine the winter ice and bottom water formation that under-pin the Antarctic marine ecosystem. The specific objectives are to: 1. Measure the foraging performance of the seals in terms of spatially-specific net energy gain while at sea, in relation to intra- and inter-annual variation in sea-ice and oceanic processes. 2. Use newly-developed (and tested) animal-borne satellite-linked Conductivity-Temperature-Depth Satellite Relay Data Loggers (CTD-SRDLs) to provide oceanographic quality data on local physical characteristics (temperature and salinity). 3. Record fine-scale foraging parameters (dive depth, duration, swimming speed) using "Dead-Reckoning" Data Loggers (DRDLs) and feeding events using Stomach Temperature Sensors (STSs). 4. Integrate these data collected in years and regions of different winter ice extent and conditions. 5. Assess diet during the winter months using stable isotope and fatty acid signature analysis. 6. Combine the biological and physical information to refine current models of predator performance based on annual climatic features. These models will be used to examine a range of climate-change scenarios, initially for elephant seals but with a view to broadening the species application at a later stage. Taken from the 2008-2009 Progress Report: Progress against objectives: Due to logistic constraints, no satellite telemetry was conducted at Casey or Macquarie Island this year, but preliminary surveys of the region were conducted for both elephant and Weddell seals (see report for 2753). However we did deploy CTD satellite tags on elephant seals at Isles Kerguelen and Elephant Island to contribute to the IPY MEOP program. These animals either traversed the Southern Ocean to forage over the Antarctic continental shelf, or remained very close to their breeding island, indicating that even within a population there are markedly different foraging strategies. Taken from the 2010-2011 Progress Report: Public summary of the season progress: Due to pre-departure accident for one of the field team leaders we were unable to reach Casey this year to complete that component of the program. Forty CTD satellite tags were successfully deployed at Vestfold Hills in January and February 2011. These tags are currently still transmitting from foraging locations along the Antarctic continental shelf and the ice edge. Project 2695 (ASAC_2695) was incorporated into this project. An Access database containing data from this project is available for download at the provided URL. The data have also been loaded into the Australian Antarctic Data Centre's ARGOS tracking database. The database can be accessed at the provided URLs.