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Scale-dependent foraging behaviour and habitat associations of two sympatric marine top predators.

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Title: Scale-dependent foraging behaviour and habitat associations of two sympatric marine top predators.
Authors: Carter, Matt I. D.1 (AUTHOR) midc@st-andrews.ac.uk, Aarts, Geert2,3 (AUTHOR), Brasseur, Sophie M. J. M.2 (AUTHOR), Hastie, Gordon D.1 (AUTHOR), Moss, Simon E. W.1 (AUTHOR), Nabe-Nielsen, Jacob4 (AUTHOR), Teilmann, Jonas4 (AUTHOR), Thompson, Dave1 (AUTHOR), Thompson, Paul M.5 (AUTHOR), Vincent, Cécile6 (AUTHOR), Russell, Debbie J. F.1,7 (AUTHOR) dr60@st-andrews.ac.uk
Source: Landscape Ecology. Feb2026, Vol. 41 Issue 2, p1-22. 22p.
Subject Terms: *Foraging behavior, *Harbor seal, *Predatory aquatic animals, *Habitats, *Habitat selection, *Gray seal
Geographic Terms: North Sea
Abstract: Context: Theoretical research has considered how animals should optimise foraging strategies to maximise fitness, adapting search scale to exploit different habitats and minimise competition. Empirical studies have described multi-scale area-restricted search (ARS) strategies for some species, but the physical and biological mechanisms underpinning such behaviour are rarely studied. Objectives: Our objectives were to quantify the presence, prevalence, and habitat associations of scale-dependent foraging for two sympatric seal species, accounting for regional variation across the seascape. Methods: We analyse a GPS telemetry dataset of 116 grey (Halichoerus grypus) and 325 harbour seals (Phoca vitulina) tracked throughout the North Sea. We test the existence of multi-scale ARS, comparing hidden Markov models (HMMs) with two ARS states against more conventional HMMs (one ARS state). We quantify regional variation and examine the scale-dependence of foraging habitat associations using post-hoc "use-encounter" models. Results: Both species exhibited nested broad-scale and focussed ARS. Accounting for scale resulted in increases of up to 25% and 46% in inferred ARS for grey and harbour seals respectively. The prevalence and habitat associations of different ARS scales varied in a regional species-specific manner. Conclusions: We demonstrate the first application of HMMs to capture multi-scale ARS from animal-borne tracking data. Overlooking scale-dependence may mask individual variation and underestimate ARS, with consequences for ecological understanding and conservation applications. We hypothesise that seals employ different search scales for different habitats, competition levels and/or prey types. We call for further research to elucidate the prevalence and ecological significance of this phenomenon in other aquatic predators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Database: Energy & Power Source
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  Data: Scale-dependent foraging behaviour and habitat associations of two sympatric marine top predators.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Carter%2C+Matt+I%2E+D%2E%22">Carter, Matt I. D.</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> midc@st-andrews.ac.uk</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Aarts%2C+Geert%22">Aarts, Geert</searchLink><relatesTo>2,3</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Brasseur%2C+Sophie+M%2E+J%2E+M%2E%22">Brasseur, Sophie M. J. M.</searchLink><relatesTo>2</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Hastie%2C+Gordon+D%2E%22">Hastie, Gordon D.</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Moss%2C+Simon+E%2E+W%2E%22">Moss, Simon E. W.</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Nabe-Nielsen%2C+Jacob%22">Nabe-Nielsen, Jacob</searchLink><relatesTo>4</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Teilmann%2C+Jonas%22">Teilmann, Jonas</searchLink><relatesTo>4</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Thompson%2C+Dave%22">Thompson, Dave</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Thompson%2C+Paul+M%2E%22">Thompson, Paul M.</searchLink><relatesTo>5</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Vincent%2C+Cécile%22">Vincent, Cécile</searchLink><relatesTo>6</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Russell%2C+Debbie+J%2E+F%2E%22">Russell, Debbie J. F.</searchLink><relatesTo>1,7</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> dr60@st-andrews.ac.uk</i>
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Landscape+Ecology%22">Landscape Ecology</searchLink>. Feb2026, Vol. 41 Issue 2, p1-22. 22p.
– Name: Subject
  Label: Subject Terms
  Group: Su
  Data: *<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Foraging+behavior%22">Foraging behavior</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Harbor+seal%22">Harbor seal</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Predatory+aquatic+animals%22">Predatory aquatic animals</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Habitats%22">Habitats</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Habitat+selection%22">Habitat selection</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Gray+seal%22">Gray seal</searchLink>
– Name: SubjectGeographic
  Label: Geographic Terms
  Group: Su
  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22North+Sea%22">North Sea</searchLink>
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract
  Group: Ab
  Data: Context: Theoretical research has considered how animals should optimise foraging strategies to maximise fitness, adapting search scale to exploit different habitats and minimise competition. Empirical studies have described multi-scale area-restricted search (ARS) strategies for some species, but the physical and biological mechanisms underpinning such behaviour are rarely studied. Objectives: Our objectives were to quantify the presence, prevalence, and habitat associations of scale-dependent foraging for two sympatric seal species, accounting for regional variation across the seascape. Methods: We analyse a GPS telemetry dataset of 116 grey (Halichoerus grypus) and 325 harbour seals (Phoca vitulina) tracked throughout the North Sea. We test the existence of multi-scale ARS, comparing hidden Markov models (HMMs) with two ARS states against more conventional HMMs (one ARS state). We quantify regional variation and examine the scale-dependence of foraging habitat associations using post-hoc "use-encounter" models. Results: Both species exhibited nested broad-scale and focussed ARS. Accounting for scale resulted in increases of up to 25% and 46% in inferred ARS for grey and harbour seals respectively. The prevalence and habitat associations of different ARS scales varied in a regional species-specific manner. Conclusions: We demonstrate the first application of HMMs to capture multi-scale ARS from animal-borne tracking data. Overlooking scale-dependence may mask individual variation and underestimate ARS, with consequences for ecological understanding and conservation applications. We hypothesise that seals employ different search scales for different habitats, competition levels and/or prey types. We call for further research to elucidate the prevalence and ecological significance of this phenomenon in other aquatic predators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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        Value: 10.1007/s10980-025-02281-z
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      – Code: eng
        Text: English
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      – SubjectFull: Foraging behavior
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Harbor seal
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      – SubjectFull: Predatory aquatic animals
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      – SubjectFull: Gray seal
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      – SubjectFull: North Sea
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              Text: Feb2026
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