Distribution of Baltic seals - ringed seal 2018
Short description
This core indicator evaluates the state of the marine environment using distribution of the three species of seals that occur in the Baltic Sea. This dataset is for the Ringed seal. Quantitative thresholds are used to evaluate the core indicators status in "Achieve", "Fail" or "Not assessed". The core indicator has three components for each species: distribution of haul-out sites, breeding sites and foraging areas. Good status is achieved when the distribution of seals is close to pristine conditions (e.g. 100 years ago), or where appropriate when currently available haul-out sites are occupied (modern baseline), and when no decrease in area of occupation occurs. The current evaluation covers the assessment period 2011-2016. This dataset displays the result of the indicator in HELCOM Assessment Scale 2 (Division of the Baltic Sea into 17 sub-basins). Attribute information: "HELCOM_ID" = ID of the HELCOM scale 2 assessment unit "Area (km2)" = Area of the HELCOM scale 2 assessment unit "Name" = Name of the HELCOM scale 2 assessment unit "Status" = Status of the indicator (“Achieve”, “Fail” or “Not assessed”) "AULEVEL" = Assessment unit level used for the indicator
Point of contact
HELCOM Secretariat
data@helcom.fi
Spatial extent
['7.526438', '33.796674', '52.535858', '66.424283']
Type
dataset
Metadata information
Identifier
Keywords
Habitats and biotopes ; GEMET - INSPIRE themes, version 1.0 ;

distribution ; marine mammal ; GEMET ;

MADS ; HOLAS2 2018 Core indicator ; Core indicator ;

Resource provider(s)
HELCOM Secretariat
data@helcom.fi

Lineage
The national survey data is compiled annually by the HELCOM Seal Expert Group. A regional database has been developed and is hosted at the HELCOM Secretariat. The new database will include detailed spatial information and is to be updated annually prior to HELCOM Seal Expert Group meetings. The database will be managed by the HELCOM Secretariat having responsibility for updating and storing data provided by the HELCOM Seal Expert Group. The data collected and used in the indicator are based on national aerial surveys. The survey methodology is described in Galatius et al. (2014). This data covers only haul-out sites and not areas used e.g. as foraging grounds. This core indicator uses three different parameters for evaluating the distribution of the three species of seal that occur in the Baltic Sea. These parameters are: 1. distribution during breeding 2. distribution during moulting, which occurs on land or ice, where data is achieved by surveys from land and air in both cases 3. area of occupancy, which is the area used for foraging and transport. Data is given by satellite- and GSM tagging data All three components are evaluated for each species in the applicable areas. Good status is achieved if a species in a given area achieves the threshold values for all three parameters. If one parameter does not achieve the threshold value, then the result for the evaluation for the given species and area is not good status i.e. the "One out all out" approach Additional information: http://www.helcom.fi/baltic-sea-trends/indicators/distribution-of-baltic-seals/