Ecologie Trophique De La Tortue Verte Chelonia Mydas Dans Les Herbiers Marins Et Algueraies Du Sud-Ouest De L’Océan Indien

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Ecologie Trophique De La Tortue Verte Chelonia Mydas Dans Les Herbiers Marins Et Algueraies Du Sud-Ouest De L’Océan Indien UNIVERSITE DE LA REUNION ECOLE DOCTORALE INTERDISCIPLINAIRE Thèse de Doctorat présentée pour obtenir le grade de Docteur Discipline : Biologie Spécialité : Biologie de l’Environnement et des Populations, Ecologie par Katia BALLORAIN Ecologie trophique de la tortue verte Chelonia mydas dans les herbiers marins et algueraies du sud-ouest de l’océan Indien Soutenue publiquement le 12 Février 2010 devant la commission d’examen constituée de : Jean-Yves GEORGES Co-directeur de thèse Chargé de recherche, CNRS IPHC, Strasbourg Henri GRIZEL Co-directeur de thèse Directeur de recherche, IFREMER, La Réunion Hervé FRITZ Rapporteur Directeur de recherche, CNRS LBBE, Lyon Charles François BOUDOURESQUE Rapporteur Professeur, Centre d’Océanologie, Marseille Henrich BRUGGEMANN Examinateur Professeur, ECOMAR, Université de La Réunion Simon BENHAMOU Examinateur Directeur de recherche, CNRS CEFE, Montpellier Georges HUGHES Membre invité Ex-Directeur du KwaZulu-Natal Wildlife, Afrique du Sud Stéphane CICCIONE Membre invité Directeur de Kélonia l’observatoire des tortues marines, La Réunion Résumé Les relations interspécifiques sont un indicateur naturel de l’état de santé d’un écosystème et de son éventuelle évolution. Dans le contexte actuel de changement climatique et d’intensification des activités humaines, nous décrivons, par une approche intégrée, les interactions existant entre les tortues vertes et leurs ressources trophiques, afin de contribuer à la compréhension de la dynamique de la biodiversité marine. La tortue verte est la seule tortue marine herbivore aux stades sub-adulte et adulte. Elle se nourrit principalement sur des herbiers de phanérogames marines et des algueraies en milieu côtier relativement peu profonds et constitue ainsi un modèle privilégié pour étudier l’écologie trophique et fonctionnelle des tortues marines en conditions naturelles. Le travail présenté dans ce manuscrit étudie deux populations de tortues vertes : la première s’alimentant de phanérogames marines sur le site de N’Gouja à Mayotte et la seconde d’algues benthiques sur la côte ouest de l’Ile de La Réunion. A ce stade de l’étude, le système tortues vertes-herbier est le mieux connu. Nous proposons une synthèse des relations existant entre le comportement de plongée et d’alimentation d’individus juvéniles et adultes avec la disponibilité trophique au sein d’un herbier marin plurispécifique. Ceci a été obtenu à partir de systèmes d’acquisition embarqués, d’observation directes de tortues vertes et de relevés phyto-écologiques conventionnels. Par ailleurs, notre étude a permis d’engager le suivi du système tortues vertes – herbier marin de N’Gouja et d’en décrire les premières tendances. En quatre ans, une diminution de près de 80 % de la biomasse végétale du site de N’Gouja accentue la pression d’herbivorie des tortues vertes sur l’herbier. Ce phénomène entraîne l’appauvrissement de la diversité spécifique des phanérogames en faveur des espèces végétales pionnières. La diminution parallèle de l’effectif de la population de tortues vertes du site de N’Gouja suggère un modèle alimentaire basé sur le principe de densité-dépendance. Les conséquences d’une surexploitation de l’herbier par les tortues vertes sont alors en opposition avec celles obtenues suite à la simulation d’une pression d’herbivorie nulle. Nous montrons que sous une pression d’herbivorie modérée, un stade successionel intermédiaire de l’herbier est maintenu et la diversité spécifique est favorisée par la diminution des capacités compétitives des espèces consommées. Il découle ainsi de notre étude des indicateurs du stade phytodynamique d’un herbier plurispécifique et de la pression d’herbivorie exercée par les tortues vertes qui permettent d’envisager les réponses écosystémiques d’un système tel que celui de N’Gouja sous différents scénarios environnementaux. Enfin, dans un cadre plus large, nous posons la question de savoir si l’évolution statutaire de Mayotte peut contribuer à approfondir et pérenniser la protection des tortues marines qui se trouvent sur son territoire. Nous décrivons la départementalisation comme un moyen d’accentuer le processus de clarification du droit applicable à Mayotte et d’assurer des moyens humains, matériels, et financiers nécessaires à la protection de l’environnement. Des recensements aériens réalisés au dessus de la côte ouest de l’île de La Réunion révèlent la présence d’individus sexuellement matures et immatures, dont le nombre augmente depuis 1996. Cette approche nous aura permis d’identifier une fréquentation préférentielle des habitats coralliens et de décrire, à partir d’observations sous-marines parallèles, la côte ouest de l’île comme un site d’alimentation d’individus matures et d’individus en phase de croissance. Ce travail renforce les bases scientifiques nécessaires à la mise en place de stratégies de conservation des tortues marines et de leurs habitats. Mots clefs : tortue verte Chelonia mydas, herbier marin, phanérogame, algueraie, Mayotte, Réunion, Sud-ouest de l’Océan Indien, écologie trophique 3 Ballorain 2010 - Ecologie trophique de la tortue verte Abstract Reproduction of sea turtles primarily relies on body reserves stored during the time spent on foraging grounds prior to the nesting season. Accordingly, the investigation of foraging behaviour of sea turtles is critical for better assessing their biology but also for conservation issues of these endangered species. Sea turtles contribute significantly to the consuming biomass of their ecosystem and hence to its functioning, thus providing natural indications of the health of the ecosystem. Yet the trophic ecology of sea turtles is poorly documented because their feeding grounds remain poorly known and for most of them hardly accessible. Among sea turtles the green turtle is the only species where sub-adults and adults are mostly herbivorous feeding on seagrass and algae patches in shallow coastal waters. Such fairly accessible marine ecosystems provide a unique opportunity to investigate sea turtle ecology under natural conditions. The study was conducted in two foraging sites of green turtles located in the south- western Indian Ocean: Mayotte (seagrass meadow) and Reunion Island (algae spots). Thanks to fine-scale sampling of feeding activities, we addressed the lack of research investigating the food requirements and the trophic role of green turtles. To day, feeding activities of green turtles are better known on seagrass. We described the habitat use, the food intake, and the herbivory pressure of green turtles exploiting a multi-sepcies seagrass meadow of Mayotte. In Reunion Island, first results provide some information about the monitoring of the green turtle population and her habitat use. Such results are paramount for the management and conservation sea turtles and their habitats. Key-words: green turtles Chelonia mydas, seagrass, algae, Mayotte, Reunion Island, Southwestern Indian Ocean, trophic ecology 4 Laboratoires et organismes d’accueil : Institut Pluridisciplinaire H. Curien – Département Ecologie, Physiologie et Ethologie, UDS, CNRS ; 23 rue Becquerel, 67 087 Strasbourg, France Kelonia, l’Observatoire des tortues marines de La Réunion, 46 rue du Général de Gaulle, 97 436 Saint Leu, La Réunion, France Institut Français de Recherche pour l’Exploitation de la Mer de La Réunion, Rue Jean Bertho, BP 60, 97 822 Le Port Cedex, La Réunion, France Université de La Réunion, 15 Avenue René Cassin, BP 7151, 97 715 Saint-Denis Messag Cedex 9 Financements et soutiens logistiques 5 Ballorain 2010 - Ecologie trophique de la tortue verte Sigles utilisés : CCL : (pour Curved Carapace Length) : longeur courbe de carapace CDM : Collectivité Départementale de Mayotte CEDTM : Centre d’Etude et de Découvertes des Tortues Marines CMR : Capture-Marquage-Recapture CNRS : Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique DAF : Direction de l’Agriculture et de la Forêt ICE : Indicateur de Changement Ecologique IFREMER : Institut Français de Recherche pour l’Exploitation de la Mer IPHC : Institut Pluridisciplinaire Hubert-Curien SCL : (pour Straight Carapace Length) : longeur droite de carapace SOOI : sud-ouest de l’océan Indien 6 TABLE DES MATIERES CHAPITRE 1 : Introduction générale 11 1.1 CONTEXTE ECOSYSTEMIQUE 12 1.1.1 Services et Processus 12 1.1.2 Fonctionnement des écosystèmes 13 1.1.2.1 L’acquisition des ressources trophiques 13 1.1.2.2 Le rôle fonctionnel des espèces 15 1.1.2.3 Les indicateurs écologiques 15 1.1.2.4 Les relations plantes-herbivores 17 1.2 ECOSYSTEMES MARINS LITTORAUX 18 1.2.1 Des écosystèmes végétaux 18 1.2.1.1 Les herbiers marins 19 1.2.1.2 Les algueraies 23 1.2.2 Des herbivores 25 1.3 TORTUES MARINES 28 1.3.1 Leur statut 28 1.3.1.1 Le contexte général 28 1.3.1.2 Des modèles d’étude 29 1.3.2 La tortue verte 30 1.3.2.1 Les phases de vie 31 1.3.2.2 Un modèle d’étude pertinent 32 1.4 PROBLEMATIQUE & OBJECTIFS DE L’ETUDE 33 CHAPITRE 2 : Contexte régional & Caractéristiques stationnelles 35 2.1 LE SUD-OUEST DE L’OCEAN INDIEN 37 2.1.1 Le contexte régional 37 2.1.1.1 Les tortues marines 37 2.1.1.2 La végétation marine 38 2.2 LES STATIONS D’ETUDE 39 2.2.1 Mayotte 40 2.2.2 La Réunion 42 CHAPITRE 3 : Habitat use of a multispecific seagrass meadow by green turtles Chelonia mydas at Mayotte Island 47 CHAPITRE 4 : Early assessment of trends in a multispecific seagrass meadow exploited by green turtles at Mayotte Island 71 CHAPITRE 5 : Seasonal diving behaviour and feeding rhythm of green turtle at Mayotte Island 93 CHAPITRE 6 : Daily feeding patterns and food intake in green
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