We aimed to describe global patterns of distribution (general and seasonal) for Orcinus orca, and to describe its environmental preferences. We used global occurrence records of O. orca and environmental data from World Ocean Atlas through MaxEnt modelling. We observed that coastal regions at higher latitudes are more suitable for O. orca, specifically we found six regions with the highest habitat suitability for O. orca: 1) North-eastern Pacific (NEP); 2) North-western Pacific (NWP); 3) North-western Atlantic (NWA); 4) North-eastern Atlantic and Arctic (NEAA); 5) Southwestern Atlantic (SWA); and 6) Southern Indian (SI). Seasonal patterns suggest that southern populations (SWA and SI) find more suitable conditions during boreal autumn and winter; meanwhile northern populations (NEP, NWP, NWA, and NEAA) during boreal spring and summer. These results are consistent with previous studies, thus suggesting strong environmental and spatial preferences for the species that may be affected by future local or global climate change, resulting in habitat loss. Species distribution modelling has allowed us to identify six regions of interest for Orcinus orca, which are highly suitable for this species; and to identify seasonal patterns that can be linked to environmental variability, but also to the migration of their prey. |
