Data from: Network analysis of sea turtle movements and connectivity: a tool for conservation prioritization
Creators: name: Kot, Connie Y.
name: Åkesson, Susanne
name: Alfaro-Shigueto, Joanna
name: Amorocho Llanos, Diego Fernando
name: Antonopoulou, Marina
name: Balazs, George H.
name: Baverstock, Warren R.
name: Blumenthal, Janice M.
name: Broderick, Annette C.
name: Bruno, Ignacio
name: Canbolat, Ali Fuat
name: Casale, Paolo
name: Cejudo, Daniel
name: Coyne, Michael S.
name: Curtice, Corrie
name: DeLand, Sarah
name: DiMatteo, Andrew
name: Dodge, Kara
name: Dunn, Daniel C.
name: Esteban, Nicole
name: Formia, Angela
name: Fuentes, Mariana M. P. B.
name: Fujioka, Ei
name: Garnier, Julie
name: Godfrey, Matthew H.
name: Godley, Brendan J.
name: González Carman, Victoria
name: Harrison, Autumn-Lynn
name: Hart, Catherine E.
name: Hawkes, Lucy A.
name: Hays, Graeme C.
name: Hill, Nicholas
name: Hochscheid, Sandra
name: Kaska, Yakup
name: Levy, Yaniv
name: Ley-Quiñónez, César P.
name: Lockhart, Gwen G.
name: López-Mendilaharsu, Milagros
name: Luschi, Paolo
name: Mangel, Jeffrey C.
name: Margaritoulis, Dimitris
name: Maxwell, Sara M.
name: McClellan, Catherine M.
name: Metcalfe, Kristian
name: Mingozzi, Antonio
name: Moncada, Felix G.
name: Nichols, Wallace J.
name: Parker, Denise M.
name: Patel, Samir H.
name: Pilcher, Nicolas J.
name: Poulin, Sarah
name: Read, Andrew J.
name: Rees, ALan F.
name: Robinson, David P.
name: Robinson, Nathan J.
name: Sandoval-Lugo, Alejandra G.
name: Schofield, Gail
name: Seminoff, Jeffrey A.
name: Seney, Erin E.
name: Snape, Robin T. E.
name: Sözbilen, Doğan
name: Tomás, Jesús
name: Varo-Cruz, Nuria
name: Wallace, Bryan P.
name: Wildermann, Natalie E.
name: Witt, Matthew J.
name: Zavala-Norzagaray, Alan A.
name: Halpin, Patrick N.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2022
Subjects: Betweenness
centrality
closeness
graph theory
marine turtle
migratory
satellite telemetry
tracking

description: <strong>Aim</strong>: Understanding the spatial ecology of animal movements is a critical element in conserving long-lived, highly mobile marine species. Analysing networks developed from movements of six sea turtle species reveals marine connectivity and can help prioritize conservation efforts. <strong>Location</strong>: Global. <strong>Methods</strong>: We collated telemetry data from 1,235 individuals and reviewed the literature to determine our dataset's representativeness. We used the telemetry data to develop spatial networks at different scales to examine areas, connections, and their geographic arrangement. We used graph theory metrics to compare networks across regions and species and to identify the role of important areas and connections. <strong>Results</strong>: Relevant literature and citations for data used in this study had very little overlap. Network analysis showed that sampling effort influenced network structure and the arrangement of areas and connections for most networks was complex. However, important areas and connections identified by graph theory metrics can be different than areas of high data density. For the global network, marine regions in the Mediterranean had high closeness while links with high betweenness among marine regions in the South Atlantic were critical for maintaining connectivity. Comparisons among species-specific networks showed that functional connectivity was related to movement ecology, resulting in networks composed of different areas and links. <strong>Main conclusions</strong>: Network analysis identified the structure and functional connectivity of the sea turtles in our sample at multiple scales. These network characteristics could help guide the coordination of management strategies for wide-ranging animals throughout their geographic extent. Most networks had complex structures that can contribute to greater robustness, but may be more difficult to manage changes when compared to simpler forms. Area-based conservation measures would benefit sea turtle populations when directed towards areas with high closeness dominating network function. Promoting seascape connectivity of links with high betweenness would decrease network vulnerability.
description: Please cite Kot et al. 2022 or contact the authors directly for more information. Funding provided by: Primary support was from the Global Ocean Biodiversity Initiative (GOBI) grant from the International Climate Initiative (IKI). The German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU) supports this initiative based on a decision adopted by the German Bundestag.*<br>Crossref Funder Registry ID: <br>Award Number:
description: We collated telemetry data from 1,235 individuals and reviewed the literature to determine our dataset's representativeness. We used the telemetry data to develop spatial networks at different scales to examine areas, connections, and their geographic arrangement. We used graph theory metrics to compare networks across regions and species and to identify the role of important areas and connections.