Foraging Ecology of Crabeater Seals (Lobodon Carcinophagus)

美国全球海洋生态系统动力学（GLOBEC）计划的目标是了解并最终预测海洋动物物种的种群如何应对自然和人为气候变化。 对南大洋的研究表明，气候过程和生态系统动态之间通过每年海冰的形成和破坏存在着强烈的耦合。 南大洋全球生态系统方案将通过确定影响目标物种的分布、丰度和种群动态的关键参数，调查物理过程与生态系统反应之间的动态关系。 SO GLOBEC计划的总体目标是阐明大陆架环流过程及其对海冰形成和磷虾分布的影响，并研究决定磷虾存活率和向更高营养水平（包括企鹅、海豹和鲸鱼）提供的因素。美国对国际SO GLOBEC计划的贡献的重点将是冬季过程。这一部分的重点是成年雌性海狮的分布和觅食行为，使用卫星连接跟踪，专门的潜水员记录器和稳定同位素示踪剂的组合。这项研究将与侧重于猎物（磷虾）分布和物理环境的组成部分相协调。将使用最优模型对结果进行分析。综合SO GLOBEC计划的结果将是提高海洋生物资源的可预测性，特别是在地方和全球气候变化方面。

The U.S. Global Ocean Ecosystems Dynamics (U.S. GLOBEC) program has the goal of understanding and ultimately predicting how populations of marine animal species respond to natural and anthropogenic changes in climate. Research in the Southern Ocean (SO) indicates strong coupling between climatic processes and ecosystem dynamics via the annual formation and destruction of sea ice. The Southern Ocean GLOBEC Program (SO GLOBEC) will investigate the dynamic relationship between physical processes and ecosystem responses through identification of critical parameters that affect the distribution, abundance and population dynamics of target species. The overall goals of the SO GLOBEC program are to elucidate shelf circulation processes and their effect on sea ice formation and krill distribution, and to examine the factors which govern krill survivorship and availability to higher trophic levels, including penguins, seals and whales. The focus of the U.S. contribution to the international SO GLOBEC program will be on winter processes. This component will focus on the distribution and foraging behavior of adult female crabeater seals, using a combination of satellite-linked tracking, specialized diver recorders, and stable isotopic tracers. This research will be coordinated with components focused on prey (krill) distribution and the physical environment. The results will be analyzed using an optimality model. The result of the integrated SO GLOBEC program will be to improve the predictability of living marine resources, especially with respect to local and global climatic shifts.