Dear all We have a new paper (see below). Best wishes Debbie Russell Russell, DJF , Brasseur, S , Thompson, D , Hastie, GD , Janik, VM , Aarts, G , McClintock, BT , Matthiopoulos, J & McConnell, BJ 2014, ' Marine mammals trace anthropogenic structures at sea ' Current Biology , vol 24, no. 14, pp. 638. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2014.06.033 Summary On land, species from all trophic levels have adapted to fill vacant niches in environments heavily modified by humans. In the marine environment, ocean infrastructure has led to artificial reefs, resulting in localized increases in fish and crustacean density. Whether marine apex predators exhibit behavioural adaptations to utilise such a scattered potential resource is unknown. Using high resolution GPS data we show how infrastructure, including wind turbines and pipelines, shapes the movements of individuals from two seal species (Phoca vitulina and Halichoerus grypus). Using state-space models, we infer that these animals are using structures to forage. We highlight the ecological consequences of such behaviour, at a time of unprecedented developments in marine infrastructure. -- *********************************************** Dr Debbie Russell Sea Mammal Research Unit (SMRU) Centre for Research into Ecological and Environmental Modelling (CREEM) Office: +44 (0)1334 467281 Wednesdays: +44 (0)1334 461808 Postal address: SMRU Gatty Marine Laboratory University of St Andrews St Andrews Fife KY16 8LB UK *********************************************** The University of St Andrews is a charity registered in Scotland : No SC013532