Dauphin Island Sea Lab (DISL) Senior Marine Scientist Dr. Ruth H. Carmichael joined a team of international scientists to track more than 100 marine megafauna species. In the research published by Science Magazine, the team led by The Australian National University (ANU) identified the most critical locations in our global oceans where marine conservation efforts are needed.
The global United Nations-endorsed research project MegaMove involves nearly 400 scientists from more than 50 countries, highlighting where protection can be implemented specifically for the conservation of marine megafauna.
Dr. Carmichael’s team provided high-resolution tagging data collected by the DISL’s Marine Mammal Research Program. The program has been tracking manatees using satellite/GPS telemetry for more than 15 years and has uncovered novel patterns in distribution, migration, and habitat use.
“By understanding how marine species move, we can inform management strategies targeted to most effectively protect marine species and their habitats worldwide,” Dr. Carmichael said.
Current marine protection areas include only eight percent of the world’s total oceans, which the United Nations High Seas Treaty seeks to expand to 30 percent.
The research found that the targets of the current Treaty, signed by 115 countries but still to be ratified, are a step in the right direction and will be key to assisting conservation. Still, it is insufficient to cover all critical areas used by threatened marine megafauna, suggesting that additional threat mitigation measures are needed.
Some of the ocean’s best-known creatures – known as marine megafauna – include sharks, whales, turtles, and seals. They are typically top predators with critical roles in marine food webs but face growing threats from human-related environmental impacts.
ANU marine ecologist and research lead author Associate Professor Ana Sequeira said, “The study’s goal is to identify areas used by marine megafauna for essential behaviors, such as foraging, resting, and migratory corridors. These areas can only be determined based on their tracked movement patterns.”
Sequeira added, “We found that the areas used by these animals overlap significantly with threats like fishing, shipping, warming temperatures, and plastic pollution.”
Implementing mitigation strategies, such as modifying fishing gear, utilizing different lighting in nets, and implementing traffic management schemes for ships, will likely be key to alleviating the current human pressure on these species.
The research also aligns with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, specifically Goal 14 on water, and more specifically, with Goal A of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, which aims to halt the human-induced extinction of threatened species.
Associate Professor Sequeira was a recipient of the 2024 Australian Academy of Science Honorific Awards for her outstanding contributions to marine biology, particularly in her work with large aquatic creatures, such as the whale shark, and for revealing their global distributions. She is also the research director and founder of MegaMove, a global scientific project she launched in 2020.
“MegaMove brings together an international network of researchers to provide innovative research to advance the global conservation of marine megafauna,” she said.
“We are honored to have been part of the MegaMove research team for the past decade,” said Carmichael. “It has been a remarkable opportunity for us to share some of the groundbreaking manatee research we are doing here on the Alabama coast and demonstrate its global importance as part of understanding coastal species and ecosystem functions in a changing environment. We look forward to continuing our global collaborations.”
Carmichael is also a Professor of Marine Sciences at the University of South Alabama.
The research has been published in Science.