Turtle 'go-slow zone' extensions needed

Date: June 23, 2017

Source: James Cook University

James Cook University marine scientists are calling for an extension of go-slow zones in turtle habitats to reduce boat strikes on the threatened creatures.

JCU's Dr Takahiro Shimada was part of a joint team from JCU and the Department of Environment and Heritage Protection that created and implemented the study. They tracked 18 green and 20 loggerhead turtles, in some cases for more than two-and-a-half years.

He said the team concentrated on the Moreton Bay area of Brisbane, as this is where most turtle strikes happen in Queensland. Dr Shimada said that many shallow and all deeper areas in the bay are not go- slow zones.

"At the time the regulations were brought into effect, it wasn't possible to track turtle habitats as accurately as we can now. So we set out to document where the turtles actually are," he said.

The scientists found the turtles they tracked were present throughout the bay, and stayed mostly in water less than five metres deep.

Read on  

Turtle power: How hatching together avoids capture

July 5, 2016

New research has found that green turtles hatching en masse from their nests 'swamp' predators, allowing more individuals to reach the safety of the sea.

The study, by the Universidade Federal de Alagoas in Brazil and the University of Bristol in the UK, was carried out on a pristine and remote island near Brazil where there are 3,600 green turtle nests (Chelonia mydas) per year and very little human disturbance.

Researchers observed 33 of these nests every half an hour throughout the night to discover how simultaneously emerging from individual nests helps baby turtles to survival.

The main predator of green turtle hatchlings on the island is the yellow crab (Johngarthia lagostoma), which is not much larger than the hatchlings themselves. This means they have a long 'handling time' while they grapple with their bulky meal, so they were easily observable and remained close to the point of capture.

Findings, published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B today [6 July], show that mass departures of green turtle hatchlings saturates the foraging ability of the yellow crab, particularly as it spends a long time handling each prey item. Individuals emerging from their nests in bigger groups are therefore significantly more likely to survive.

Over 3,000 turtles hatched during the study. Typically 50 turtle hatchlings emerged at a time from a nest. Bigger groups led to decreased predation during the crawl to the sea, indicating that risk was 'diluted' between nest-mates.

Dr Christos Ioannou, a NERC-funded fellow from the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Bristol, said: "The biology of the turtles and crabs helps us rule out other possible ways for bigger groups to avoid predators; for example, the hatchlings don't team up to protect themselves.

Read more at: 

Endangered green turtles may feed, reside at Peru's central, northern coast November 19, 2014, PLOS - via Herp Digest

Peruvian coastal waters may provide suitable habitat that may help the recovery of endangered South Pacific green turtles, according to a study published November 19, 2014 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Ximena Velez-Zuazo from University of Puerto Rico and colleagues.

Green turtles inhabit tropical and subtropical coastal waters around the world. The authors of this study worked to identify suitable habitat for the endangered species by measuring two populations off the Peruvian coast from 2010 to 2013 in potentially important feeding grounds.

The researchers found that the turtle population had fast-growing members and the composition was similar to their expectations for each location, indicating healthy populations at both sites. At the northern warm, less productive ecotone El Ñuro, the population was composed of mostly sub-adults. At the cold, nutrient rich Paracas off the southern coast, the population was composed primarily of juveniles and no adults. According to the authors, the populations recorded at both sites indicate that nutrient rich conditions found in Peruvian coastal waters might contribute to the recovery of East Pacific green turtles. However, both populations are still threatened by pollution, bycatch, and illegal catch, and the researchers suggest conservation measures may be necessary to maintain current populations.

Shaleyla Kelez and Javier Quiñones, co-authors in this collaborative study, agreed on the value long-term marc-recapture studies have to better understand the importance of these areas and the need for its adequate protection.

Story Source:

The above story is based on materials provided by PLOS. Note: Materials may be edited for content and length.

Journal Reference:

1. Ximena Velez-Zuazo, Javier Quiñones, Aldo S. Pacheco, Luciana Klinge, Evelyn Paredes, Sixto Quispe, Shaleyla Kelez. Fast Growing, Healthy and Resident Green Turtles (Chelonia mydas) at Two Neritic Sites in the Central and Northern Coast of Peru: Implications for Conservation. PLoS ONE, 2014; 9 (11): e113068 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0113068

PLOS. "Endangered green turtles may feed, reside at Peru's central, northern coast." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 19 November 2014. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/11/141119142201.htm>.

Study aims to solve turtle deaths mystery - via Herp Digest

AAP, October 22, 2014,

Researchers are trying to solve the mystery of what caused the mass strandings and deaths of green turtles in Queensland's far north two years ago

They are tagging hundreds of turtles along the Great Barrier Reef as part of a project to try and prevent more deaths.

WWF-Australia's national manager for species Darren Grover says the aim is to work out which contaminants are in the water, the degree to which green turtles are absorbing them and how this may impact their health. 

"Turtles are a good barometer of reef health and the contaminants affecting them are also likely to be impacting other marine creatures," he said.

"Finding out which chemicals are a problem will help government and industry target programs to prevent potential toxins from entering the Reef." 

Researchers from WWF-Australian and the Banrock Station Environmental Trust have so far caught, tagged and measured about 700 turtles along the reef.

Samples of blood, shell and stomach contents have been taken from many of the turtles to give scientists a clearer picture of the animal's potential exposure to chemicals.

It's hoped the study will to help figure out why about 100 green turtles stranded at Upstart Bay, south of Townsville, in 2012 . 

Some of the samples taken during the study, of which results won't be available for about three and half years, will be compared to those taken from turtles that died in the stranding.

Queensland Environment Minister Andrew Powell says it shouldn't be assumed contaminants in the water are to blame for the animals' deaths. 

"I think that's answering the question before we've done the research," he told the ABC.

"I stress every study we've done to date hasn't produced a definitive case."

Green turtle links Costa Rica's Cocos Island with Ecuador's Galapagos - via Herp Digest

Lindsay Fendt, 6/23/14, Tico Times

One normal migration for turtles, one giant discovery for humankind.

With his 14-day journey from the waters of Costa Rica’s Cocos Island National Park to the Galapagos Marine Reserve in Ecuador, “Sanjay,” an endangered green sea turtle, established the first direct migration link between the two protected areas.

Sanjay was one of three green sea turtles tagged by scientists from the marine conservation groups Turtle Island Restoration Network and PRETOMA during a 10-day research expedition. Using a $4,000 satellite tag, biologists from the organizations were able to map Sanjay’s exact migration.

“It’s truly remarkable. Sanjay knew where he was headed, and made a beeline from one marine protected area to the next,” said Alex Hearn, conservation science director for Turtle Island Restoration Network. “These protected areas of ocean are hot spots for endangered green sea turtles, but we also need to think about their migratory corridors between protected areas.”

Though the two organizations have tagged hundreds of sea turtles over the years, Sanjay is the first to show movement between the two protected areas. Sanjay’s migration is the latest piece of evidence linking the green turtles of the Galapagos and Cocos Island, a link that biologists have long suspected due to the populations’ genetic similarities.

The project’s researchers hope that the new evidence will help encourage the development of conservation programs between protected areas.

“These species are protected while they are in the reserves, but as soon as they swim beyond the no-fishing zone, they are being hammered by industrial fishing vessels that set millions of hooks in the region,” said Todd Steiner, executive director of Turtle Island Restoration Network. “Our goal is to collect the necessary scientific data to understand the migratory routes and advocate for ‘protected swimways’ to protect these endangered species though out their migration.”

Satellite tagged green turtles reveal shortcomings in marine protection areas

Unique research by scientists from Deakin University in Victoria, Australia, has been using satellite tracking to monitor tagged green turtles in the Indian Ocean.

The findings indicate that even the largest Marine Protection Areas (MPAs) – some covering hundreds of thousands of square kilometres of sea – may need to be buttressed with smaller networks of protected areas.

It has been discovered that the turtles travel much further from their breeding grounds than previously suspected to forage for food.

The international team from Deakin, Swansea University in Wales and the Seychelles located green turtles nesting ashore at night and fitted them with satellite tags.

They then used satellites to monitor their movements in the Chagos Archipelago in the Indian Ocean, one of the largest protected marine parks in the world, covering 640,000 sq km, and renowned for its pristine coral reefs and schools of endangered species.

“Over the last few years, governments around the world have declared some massive marine parks, typically around ocean islands,” said Prof Graeme Hays, Deakin Chair of Marine Science. “How well these protect marine life has been heavily debated.”

Continued

75 Green turtle hatchlings crawl to sea (Promotes Hotel) - via Herp Digest

Panca Nugraha, The Jakarta Post, Lombok | Archipelago | Thu, September 06 2012

Some 75 green sea turtles hatchlings crawled to the sea at Senggigi beach in Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara, with a little help from dozens of tourists on Thursday.

As the hatchlings reached the open sea and swam vigorously against the tide, the tourists had kept their cameras on to capture the joyful moments.

“What an amazing experience. I feel so happy to witness this moment during my first trip to Lombok,” Australia’s Alicia Noonan told the Jakarta Post.

The management of Sheraton hotel in Senggigi, which created the event to mark its 75th anniversary, said that the green sea turtles were hatched at the hotel’s turtle conservation center.

The hotel buys eggs from locals and puts them for incubation. The baby turtles, locally called tukik, will stay at the center for the next three months before being returned to the sea.

“In 15 years, we have released more than nine million turtles to their habitat,” Sheraton sales director Jelantik Suharta said. 

300 Green turtles die at Cayman Turtle Farm

Questions raised about safety of turtle farm
August 2012. After a leak of seawater from a pipe, 300 Green turtles have died at a turtle farm on the Cayman Islands. The turtle farm is a controversial turtle breeding centre that also sells turtle products to raise money. Not everyone agrees with this style of conservation, and although much good has been done in boosting local populations of turtles, there is much disquiet in some quarters about their methods.

The Cayman Turtle Farm has issued a statement (see below) that leaves several questions unanswered.

We have not visited the farm, but Wildlife Extra question why 300 turtles are kept in one tank, and extremely unnatural environment and one that would open the turtles to the risk of disease. Additionally, when there was a known leak, how on earth did a tank containing 300 turtles become empty without anyone noticing? The turtles must have suffered terribly as they are perfectly capable of living outside water for a time, they must have been left with no water for an extended period.

Time lag
Although the accident happened on 16th July, it didn't reach the news in the Caymans for 2 weeks, and there is no mention of the incident that we could find anywhere on the Turtle Farm website.

This is not the first time that the Cayman Turtle Farm has been at the centre of a controversy. A few years ago the Cayman Turtle Farm tried to export live sea turtles to Europe. However because the Cayman Farm was not recognized by CITES as a legal breeding facility, any international shipment of its turtles was in direct violation of CITES. In providing turtles for display at Sea Life Centres in Europe, the Cayman Farm hoped to generate public support for its controversial agenda of creating markets for turtle products. Conservation groups, meanwhile, claimed that the main reason green turtles have finally begun to rebound from near extinction is that international demand for turtle meat and shell has been all but eliminated. These groups have good reason to fear that any re-opening of trade would create the kind of demand that fuels illegal poaching and black markets for turtles caught from the wild.

Continued:  http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/cayman-turtle-farm.html

Mystery mass deaths of green turtles in Australia – via Herp Digest

Phys.Org, 6/29/12

Scientists were at a loss Friday to explain the mysterious deaths of more than 70 green turtles that have washed up on beaches in northeast Australia over the last week.

Queensland state authorities said 62 of the vulnerable species were confirmed dead and another 10 were spotted floating at sea by a helicopter.

Marty McLaughlin, operations manager at Queensland Parks and Wildlife Services, said the turtles were nourished and had no obvious signs of illness.

"There is no obvious cause of death. We've tested for all the normal reasons, like boat strikes and starvation, but that has not occurred," he told AFP.

"It is species-specific to green turtles and we can't see any signs of toxicity or chemicals, and our analysis to date has shown no parasites. It's a complete mystery."

All of the turtles were found around Upstart Bay, south of Townsville, in the past week.

McLaughlin said crabs and pigs feeding on the carcasses did not appear affected by whatever killed the turtles, which are considered vulnerable under national