20.500.12556/RUP-23553 No place like home assessing the multidimensional habitat use of endangered Arabian Sea humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae, Borowski 1781) with satellite telemetry The Arabian Sea humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae; ASHW) is understood to be the only population of this species that does not undertake long-range seasonal migrations between high- and low-latitude waters. Until recently, understanding the movements and range of individual ASHWs has relied mainly on comparisons of dorsal fin and tail-fluke images archived in photo-identification catalogues and on observations made during small-vessel surveys off the coast of Oman since 2000. The ASHW population is classified as Endangered by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, with an estimated 82 individuals off Oman’s coast (95% CI: 60–111), and faces increasing anthropogenic threats throughout its known range. To better understand the spatial ecology of this population, 14 Argos-enabled satellite tags were attached to ASHW off the Arabian Sea coast of Oman between February 2014 and December 2017. Individuals were tracked for a total of 749 days (mean=53, SD = 42, range=18–163 days) producing 484 days of depth-use data (mean=44, SD = 26, range=15-87). Home ranges extended along the western Arabian Sea coastline of northern Yemen and southern Oman, with a core area in the Gulf of Masirah (Oman). Switching state-space models revealed predominant area restricted search behavior (associated with breeding and foraging behavior) over continental shelf areas, with transiting movements occurring further offshore. The widest-ranging individual (a female, tag longevity 120 days) completed a round trip across the Northwest Indian Ocean between the Gulf of Masirah and the Gulf of Mannar (India). The track of this animal, and others along the coast of Oman, revealed an overlapping relationship between ecological drivers related to habitat use, including foraging and breeding, with fishing and shipping activities. The findings demonstrate the unique ecology of ASHW compared to other humpback whale populations and underscores the need for national and international authorities to incorporate these results into management initiatives to safeguard this small and Endangered population. Arabian Sea dive behavior home range management Megaptera novaeangliae satellite telemetry static state space modeling Arabsko morje potapljaško vedenje območje aktivnosti upravljanje Megaptera novaeangliae satelitska telemetrija statično modeliranje v prostoru stan true false true Angleški jezik Slovenski jezik Revija 2026-08-30 20:35:49 2026-08-30 20:35:49 2026-08-31 03:10:12 0000-00-00 00:00:00 2026 0 0 str. 1-19 [article no.] 1719547. Vol. 13 2026 0000-00-00 Zaloznikova Objavljeno NiDoloceno 0000-00-00 0000-00-00 2026-06-19 599.51/.53 2296-7745 10.3389/fmars.2026.1719547 289377795 https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/marine-science/articles/10.3389/fmars.2026.1719547/full 1 5f1b47f6-a4a1-11f1-9e8d-005056ac49c0 https://repozitorij.upr.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=34964 https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2026.1719547 1 601580e5-a4a1-11f1-9e8d-005056ac49c0 https://repozitorij.upr.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=34965 RAZ_Willson_Andrew_John_2026.pdf RAZ_Willson_Andrew_John_2026.pdf 1 3945936C78F5B95BFE8F30C15989E536 80a1873adebf85d37d7fe3a6aab5d0a27193f5f798e3689a6a5c3d9fc82cf363 7d9e7ebf-a4a1-11f1-9e8d-005056ac49c0 https://repozitorij.upr.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=34966 Fakulteta za matematiko, naravoslovje in informacijske tehnologije 0 0 0