Leatherback DOM tools

As an endangered species, leatherback turtles are protected under the Endangered Species Act, which also frequently their consideration in fisheries management plans. Given the ubiquity of this consideration for a number of West Coast fisheries, a number of different species distribution models have been built to predict where these turtles are likely to occur in near-real time. This webpage includes a couple examples of models included in Welch et al (2023) and in Lezama-Ochoa et al (2025) based on two different environmental datasets: Copernicus Marine Environmental Monitoring Service (CMEMS) and Regional Ocean Modeling System.

CMEMS

Based on one set of selected environmental covariates from CMEMS, this model was used within a set of other SDMs for top predators to determine shifting distributions related to marine heatwaves. Models were fitted using a Boosted Regression Tree and are predicted for the US West Coast. The most recent map product can be found to the right of this text.

Learn more about these models here and explore the model predictions here.

ROMS

This model is very similar to that of the other model developed as part of Top Predator Watch, but relies on a slightly different set of environmental variables using a different data assimilative model specific to the US West Coast. The mapped prediction from this model can be seen to the right of this text.

Learn more about these models here and explore the model predictions here.