Abstract
Advances in life-history research on Atlantic bluefin tuna (ABT; Thunnus thynnus) have informed management measures that supported population recovery amid intensifying human pressures. However, movement data from the eastern Mediterranean (EMED) remain scarce, limiting understanding of basin-scale connectivity. Here, we deployed pop-up satellite archival tags on six ABT off Israel and incorporated two additional individuals tagged in Canada and Norway that subsequently entered the EMED to examine movements in relation to oceanographic conditions. Across 1563 daily positions and 995 archival days, ABT occupied the Levantine and Aegean Seas during summer under warm, stratified conditions consistent with surface-oriented reproductive behaviour. In one individual, high-resolution archival data provided the first behavioural indication of putative spawning in this region. Late-summer dispersal revealed two patterns: EMED residency and westward migration to overwintering grounds in the western Mediterranean, with some individuals continuing into the North Atlantic Ocean. The northern Balearic–Ligurian region emerged as the primary foraging ground for contingents across the Mediterranean, highlighting the need for management that accounts for sub-basin structure and seasonal mixing.
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Subjects
- Ecology
- Ocean sciences
Acknowledgements
We are grateful to all recreational and commercial fishers who supported the fieldwork, to Dr Pablo Cermeño for assistance with tag recovery, and to Drs Emil Aalto and Jon Dale for their insightful review of the manuscript. We also thank the Israel Nature and Parks Authority and the Department of Fisheries at the Israel Ministry of Agriculture for their cooperation in facilitating research permits.
Funding
This research was funded by Israel Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure (grant number 222-17-014), the Kahn Foundation, Stanford University, and the TAG A Giant Fund of the Ocean Foundation. Part of this work was carried out under the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) Atlantic-Wide Research Programme for Bluefin Tuna (GBYP), which is funded by the European Union, several ICCAT CPCs, the ICCAT Secretariat, and other entities (see https://www.iccat.int/gbyp/en/overview.asp). Further funding was provided by the Institute of Marine Research (IMR) in Norway. The content of this paper does not necessarily reflect ICCAT’s point of view or that of any of the other sponsors, who bear no responsibility for it. In addition, it does not indicate the Commission’s future policy in this area.
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Bigal, E., Pagniello, C.M.L.S., Ferter, K. et al. Seasonal migration patterns of Atlantic bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus) occupying the eastern Mediterranean Sea.
Sci Rep (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-63475-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-63475-2
Keywords
- Aegean Sea
- Mixed-layer depth
- Population connectivity
- Spawning-site fidelity
- Vertical habitat use
- Electronic tagging
- Levantine Sea
Source: Ecology - nature.com
