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Marine mammal monitoring
Overseas territories
REMMOA campaigns :
survey of marine mammals and
other pelagic megafauna by aerial
observation
West Indies French Guiana / Indian Ocean /
French Polynesia / New Caledonia - Wallis &
Futuna
Issues
French overseas waters
France is responsible for the world’s second largest
Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) with more than
11 million km2 of surface area. In particular, waters
located around the overseas départements and
territories account for most of this area and comprise
many remarkable tropical habitats and species.
The Agence des aires marines protégées is currently
carrying out a significant effort in the overseas
waters to inventory, monitor and conserve the
natural marine environment in the zone.
Marine mammals :
indicators of ecological status
Marine mammals are under increasing pressure.
These species breed few juveniles and therefore
have limited restoration capabilities.
The distribution of marine mammals and seabirds,
rays, sharks and turtles is a relevant indicator of
the health of the marine ecosystems they live in.
The conservation of these top marine predators
ensures positive effects for the entire marine
biodiversity.
Presentation of the REMMOA campaigns
Main objectives
These campaigns aim to provide a “snapshot” of
the distribution and abundance of marine mammals,
seabirds, turtles, rays, sharks and large fish visible
from the surface. They also identify habitats
associated with the highest densities or greatest
biological diversities. Moreover, the distribution of
certain human activities (fishing, maritime traffic,
waste) is also collected. These campaigns, aiming
to identify priority conservation areas, are the
first of this kind to be carried out in these regions.
Geographical coverage and schedule
The programme is carried out identically in four
regional components across all the tropical waters
in the French territories in the three oceans
(see table below).
Area of study
Operations completed
Atlantic ocean :
EEZ of the French West Indies and Guiana
Martinique and Guadeloupe:
February-March 2008 ;
French Guiana : October
South-Western Indian Ocean :
South-Western Indian Ocean : EEZ of
Reunion island, Mayotte, the Scattered
Islands and the countries of the Indian
Ocean Commission (Comoro Islands,
Madagascar, Mauritius, Seychelles)
December 2009 to April 2010
Southern Pacific :
EEZ of French Polynesia
January to April 2011
South-Western Pacific :
EZZ of New-Caledonia and Wallis et Futuna
Operations planned
October to december 2014
French EEZ
Internationales EEZ
Maps of areas studied in French Polynesia and distribution of
sightings (cetaceans, birds, elasmobranchs and turtles)
Method used
Species are sighted from a plane, making it
possible to cover a wide area in a short amount
of time. This is a flexible method, as it may be
implemented depending on the wind or the sea
state, on which the quality of sightings depends. It
allows comparable data sets to be acquired using a
standard collection method.
Expected results
Inventory
The main advantage of these campaigns is the
ability to acquire new knowledge at sea about
ocean habitats and species which are still very
little-known.
Conservation
Using the results obtained, priority habitats can be
identified for the establishment and delimitation
or management of marine protected areas or
sanctuaries for marine mammals. They can also be
used to define relevant indicators for monitoring
the status of marine ecosystems as part of a
surveillance strategy. These campaigns come in
addition to the studies already carried out locally.
Research
These campaigns will provide data for fundamental
research on ecological issues relating to top marine
predators. The data collected will be used to model their
preferred habitats and to predict the distribution of top
predators according to environmental factors such as
temperature, primary production or bathymetry.
The Agence des aires marines protégées (French
Marine Protect Areas Agency) supervises the
performance of these campaigns and has appointed the
PELAGIS observatory of La Rochelle University, France
(UMS 3462) for the implementation and scientific
management.
The staff at the PELAGIS observatory, taking part in
REMMOA campaigns, is also responsible for coordinating
surveys of cetaceans in the Atlantic waters around
metropolitan France. For the implementation of the
REMMOA campaigns, the PELAGIS observatory is
supported by networks of local stakeholders comprising
NGOs and organisations locally studying the conservation
of marine megafauna.
Agence des aires marines protégées
16 quai de la douane
BP 42932 - 29229 BREST cedex 2
www.aires-marines.fr
Distribution of sightings of large Delphininae
(bottlenose dolphins and other species) and modelling
of their habitat in the South-West Indian Ocean.
MAI 2014 - Photos : PE L AGIS- ULR ; Anne Lit taye / Agen ce des aires ma rines protégées ; William Larue ; Pierre Larue .- Réalisation : Agenc e d es air es mar ines pr otégées.
Achievements, cooperation
Marine mammal monitoring
in New Caledonia and Wallis & Futuna
REMMOA campaigns : survey of marine mammals and other pelagic megafauna
by aerial observation
Background and issues
The French EEZ located in the South-Western part of the Pacific Ocean is a vast area spanning
approximately two million km2 and comprising two separate entities of very different sizes : the
largest one, located to the West, is the New Caledonia EEZ and forms the South-Eastern quarter of
the Coral Sea; the other corresponds to the Wallis & Futuna EEZ, located approximately 2,000 km
North-East from the former one.
Knowledge of cetaceans in the zone
Knowledge of cetacean populations varies across the
22 countries and islands in the South Pacific area. In total,
while 33 species have been sighted, there is no available
information about their distribution and numbers. Knowledge
about cetacean populations in the French waters of this
region also varies : many observations have been and are still
conducted in the lagoons and coastal waters in New Caledonia,
from land, on board light boats or through systematic flights
over the lagoon. The number of sightings is high. Beyond the
coastal area, observations are still limited, scarce and usually
not systematic. There are currently 16 species identified
across the waters of New Caledonia.
Reported sightings of cetaceans in the Wallis & Futuna area
are low ; this is one of the least-known areas of the Pacific in this regard.
Political conservation context
Eleven countries and territories in the Pacific Ocean (Australia, Cook Islands, Fiji Islands, French Polynesia,
New Caledonia, Niue, Papua New Guinea, Samoa Islands, American Samoa, Tokelau and Vanuatu) have currently
granted their waters “sanctuary” status for whales, or even for all cetaceans. Most of these countries are
members of the South Pacific Regional Environmental Programme (SPREP / PROE), concerning both island
and ocean systems and featuring a 2013-2017 action plan for dolphins and whales. They have signed the
Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the Conservation of Cetaceans and their Habitats in the Pacific
Island Region, drafted within the framework of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species
(CMS – Bonn Convention) which also has a multi-year action plan.
The REMMOA campaign
in New Caledonia and Wallis & Futuna
REMMOA will provide a “snapshot” of the distribution and abundance of marine mammals as well as
other marine megafauna species (seabirds, turtles, rays and sharks). These campaigns conducted over a
representative part of the New Caledonia and Wallis & Futuna waters will help identify the habitats
associated with the highest densities and the greatest diversities ; it will then be possible, by
modelling, to predict the distribution of these areas of ecological interest over all of the
waters concerned. This aerial observation campaign is the first of its kind to take
place in this region.
Period of performance and expected coverage
The mission should cover 40% of the New Caledonia EEZ and 90% of the Wallis & Futuna EEZ. The sampled
areas are distributed over two layers defined according to depth : one of approximately 150,000 km2 with
steep sloping areas, usually from the coast down to 2,000 m deep, where there are plans to do 110 hours
of effort ; the other is an oceanic layer covering approximately 650,000 km2 with 270 hours of effort.
The homogeneous sampling of these layers will be carried out based on predefined paths.
Expected results
Once analysed, this data will be key to improving knowledge of the species
and to managing the marine environment since information on fisheries,
waste and maritime traffic, collected simultaneously, will highlight areas
where interactions with human activities are significant.
Implementation
The PELAGIS (ULR-CNRS) Observatory is responsible for the scientific and
operational coordination of this mission. Three planes with their respective
crews, i.e. approximately 25 people (a crew comprises at least 2 pilots,
1 mechanic and 5 observers) are planned for the flights. The observers are
recruited beforehand for their field experience or their experience in aerial
sighting for the identification of cetaceans and sea birds. Local recruitment
of campaign participants and the organisation of awareness actions targeting
local populations will be encouraged as much as possible.
Agence des aires marines protégées
16 quai de la douane
BP 42932 - 29229 BREST cedex 2
www.aires-marines.fr
MAI 2 014 - Crédits photos : PE L AGIS-UL R ; Martin Rava nat / Tieti Diving - Réalisation : Agence des aires marines protégée s.
A climate analysis covering over ten years of data has determined the periods most suitable for aerial
observation in this South-Western region of the Pacific. The provisional schedule runs from October to
December and distributes the observation effort to take advantage of the best meteorological intervals for
sightings. The campaign does not therefore target the humpback whales occurring in New Caledonia during
southern winter and spring, but covers all other species of cetaceans.