Long-distance migrations by the hawksbill turtle, Eretmochelys imbricata, from north-eastern Australia

1998 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 89 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey D. Miller ◽  
Kirstin A. Dobbs ◽  
Colin J. Limpus ◽  
Neil Mattocks ◽  
André M. Landry Jr
Keyword(s):  
Adult Female ◽  
Solomon Islands ◽  
Satellite Telemetry ◽  
Marine Turtle ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
Eretmochelys Imbricata ◽  
Turtle Species ◽  
Eastern Australia ◽  
Nesting Beaches ◽  
Hawksbill Turtles

Tag recoveries from four adult female hawksbill turtles, Eretmochelys imbricata, tagged on the Great Barrier Reef, Australia, are reported. Hawksbill turtles on breeding migrations move between Australia and neighbouring countries including Vanuatu, Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea and Indonesia. Migratory distances between foraging areas and nesting beaches ranged from 368 to 2425 km. A review of data from tag recoveries, genetic analysis and satellite telemetry indicates that adult female hawksbill turtles often exhibit migratory behaviour parallelling that of other marine turtle species. This study refutes the myth that hawksbill turtles remain resident at reefs associated with their nesting beaches.

scholarly journals Natal foraging philopatry in eastern Pacific hawksbill turtles

2017 ◽  
Vol 4 (8) ◽  
pp. 170153 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander R. Gaos ◽  
Rebecca L. Lewison ◽  
Michael P. Jensen ◽  
Michael J. Liles ◽  
Ana Henriquez ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Research ◽  
Eastern Pacific ◽  
Marine Turtle ◽  
Natal Philopatry ◽  
Eretmochelys Imbricata ◽  
Turtle Species ◽  
Marine Turtles ◽  
Complex Processes ◽  
Natal Homing ◽  
Hawksbill Turtles

The complex processes involved with animal migration have long been a subject of biological interest, and broad-scale movement patterns of many marine turtle populations still remain unresolved. While it is widely accepted that once marine turtles reach sexual maturity they home to natal areas for nesting or reproduction, the role of philopatry to natal areas during other life stages has received less scrutiny, despite widespread evidence across the taxa. Here we report on genetic research that indicates that juvenile hawksbill turtles ( Eretmochelys imbricata ) in the eastern Pacific Ocean use foraging grounds in the region of their natal beaches, a pattern we term natal foraging philopatry. Our findings confirm that traditional views of natal homing solely for reproduction are incomplete and that many marine turtle species exhibit philopatry to natal areas to forage. Our results have important implications for life-history research and conservation of marine turtles and may extend to other wide-ranging marine vertebrates that demonstrate natal philopatry.

International Movements of Adult Female Hawksbill Turtles (Eretmochelys imbricata): First Results from the Caribbean's Marine Turtle Tagging Centre

2011 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 18-25 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julia A. Horrocks ◽  
Barry H. Krueger ◽  
Marina Fastigi ◽  
Emile L. Pemberton ◽  
Karen L. Eckert
Keyword(s):  
Adult Female ◽  
Marine Turtle ◽  
Eretmochelys Imbricata ◽  
First Results ◽  
Hawksbill Turtles

scholarly journals Mitochondrial DNA Profiling to Combat the Illegal Trade in Tortoiseshell Products

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erin L. LaCasella ◽  
Michael P. Jensen ◽  
Christine A. Madden Hof ◽  
Ian P. Bell ◽  
Amy Frey ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mitochondrial Dna ◽  
Papua New Guinea ◽  
Solomon Islands ◽  
Illegal Trade ◽  
Eretmochelys Imbricata ◽  
Control Region Sequences ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Nesting Beaches ◽  
Hawksbill Turtles ◽  
Skin Samples

Hawksbill turtles (Eretmochelys imbricata) are exploited for their beautiful shell known as tortoiseshell or bekko, making them extremely vulnerable in the illegal global trade of tortoiseshell products. In this study, we developed an effective, standardized method using a commercially available kit to extract DNA and obtain informative mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) control region sequences (~800 bp) from hawksbill turtle products in order to trace the sample back to a likely stock origin. We also sequenced additional skin samples from nesting beaches of Milman Island, Australia and Arnavon Island, Solomon Islands to add to the baseline data for hawksbill turtles in the Indo-Pacific. Our results indicate that nine of the 13 tortoiseshell products obtained from Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands were from turtles with haplotypes found primarily at the Solomon Islands rookery and did not match those from nesting populations in Australia or SE Asia, with the exception of one haplotype also found in 3% of turtles at Milman Island. We also found that 23% of the market samples have haplotypes only documented in foraging populations, which illustrates the urgent need for more extensive sampling of rookeries to fill gaps in the reference baseline database. Nevertheless, our study results demonstrate an effective methodology for obtaining DNA of sufficient quantity and quality from hawksbill turtle products.

scholarly journals First record of the marine turtle leech (Ozobranchus margoi) on hawksbill turtles (Eretmochelys imbricata) in the inner granitic Seychelles

2018 ◽  
Vol 85 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Byron M. Göpper ◽  
Nina M. Voogt ◽  
Andre Ganswindt
Keyword(s):  
Chelonia Mydas ◽  
First Record ◽  
The Other ◽  
Marine Turtle ◽  
Eretmochelys Imbricata ◽  
History Museum ◽  
Turtle Species ◽  
Routine Monitoring ◽  
Hawksbill Turtles ◽  
Cousine Island

Ozobranchus spp. are leeches that feed solely on turtle blood. They are common ectoparasites found on a range of marine turtle species, with some species of the leech being implicated as vectors of fibropapilloma-associated turtle herpesvirus (FPTHV). Green (Chelonia mydas) and hawksbill (Eretmochelys imbricata) turtles are the two commonly occurring species in the inner granitic islands of the Seychelles. Routine monitoring of nesting turtles on Cousine Island, Seychelles, allowed for opportunistic sightings of leeches on two hawksbill females. In both cases infestation was low, with three leeches collected off one female turtle and five off the other. No obvious signs of papillomas secondary to infection of FPTHV were seen. All of the turtle leeches collected were determined to be Ozobranchus margoi as they had five pairs of lateral digiform branchiae. The specimens were deposited in the Seychelles Natural History Museum on Mahé. To the best of our knowledge this is the first record of Ozobranchus margoi recorded in the inner granitic Seychelles on hawksbill turtles.

scholarly journals Critical In-Water Habitats for Post-Nesting Sea Turtles from the Southern Gulf of Mexico

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (8) ◽  
pp. 793
Author(s):  
Abigail Uribe-Martínez ◽  
María de los Angeles Liceaga-Correa ◽  
Eduardo Cuevas
Keyword(s):  
Gulf Of Mexico ◽  
Marine Ecosystem ◽  
Satellite Telemetry ◽  
Marine Turtle ◽  
Home Ranges ◽  
The Bahamas ◽  
Turtle Species ◽  
Southern Gulf Of Mexico ◽  
Large Marine Ecosystem ◽  
Physical Features

Marine turtles are globally endangered species that spend more than 95% of their life cycle in in-water habitats. Nevertheless, most of the conservation, recovery and research efforts have targeted the on-land habitats, due to their easier access, where adult females lay their eggs. Targeting the large knowledge gaps on the in-water critical habitats of turtles, particularly in the Large Marine Ecosystem Gulf of Mexico, is crucial for their conservation and recovery in the long term. We used satellite telemetry to track 85 nesting females from their beaches after they nested to identify their feeding and residency habitats, their migratory corridors and to describe the context for those areas. We delimited major migratory corridors in the southern Gulf of Mexico and West Caribbean and described physical features of internesting and feeding home ranges located mainly around the Yucatan Peninsula and Veracruz, Mexico. We also contributed by describing general aggregation and movement patterns for the four marine turtle species in the Atlantic, expanding the knowledge of the studied species. Several tracked individuals emigrated from the Gulf of Mexico to as far as Nicaragua, Honduras, and the Bahamas. This information is critical for identifying gaps in marine protection and for deciphering the spatial connectivity in large ocean basins, and it provides an opportunity to assess potential impacts on marine turtle populations and their habitats.

scholarly journals Does behaviour affect the dispersal of flatback post-hatchlings in the Great Barrier Reef?

2017 ◽  
Vol 4 (5) ◽  
pp. 170164 ◽  
Author(s):  
Natalie Wildermann ◽  
Kay Critchell ◽  
Mariana M. P. B. Fuentes ◽  
Colin J. Limpus ◽  
Eric Wolanski ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Great Barrier Reef ◽  
Early Life ◽  
Marine Turtle ◽  
Life Stages ◽  
Barrier Reef ◽  
Early Life Stages ◽  
Turtle Species ◽  
Local Water ◽  
Natator Depressus ◽  
Nesting Beaches

The ability of individuals to actively control their movements, especially during the early life stages, can significantly influence the distribution of their population. Most marine turtle species develop oceanic foraging habitats during different life stages. However, flatback turtles ( Natator depressus ) are endemic to Australia and are the only marine turtle species with an exclusive neritic development. To explain the lack of oceanic dispersal of this species, we predicted the dispersal of post-hatchlings in the Great Barrier Reef (GBR), Australia, using oceanographic advection-dispersal models. We included directional swimming in our models and calibrated them against the observed distribution of post-hatchling and adult turtles. We simulated the dispersal of green and loggerhead turtles since they also breed in the same region. Our study suggests that the neritic distribution of flatback post-hatchlings is favoured by the inshore distribution of nesting beaches, the local water circulation and directional swimming during their early dispersal. This combination of factors is important because, under the conditions tested, if flatback post-hatchlings were entirely passively transported, they would be advected into oceanic habitats after 40 days. Our results reinforce the importance of oceanography and directional swimming in the early life stages and their influence on the distribution of a marine turtle species.

scholarly journals The nesting success of green turtles on beaches at Kazanli, Turkey

Oryx ◽  
1992 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 165-171 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephanie J. Coley ◽  
Andrew C. Smart
Keyword(s):  
Nest Site ◽  
Chelonia Mydas ◽  
Nesting Success ◽  
Beach Erosion ◽  
Marine Turtle ◽  
Chemical Pollution ◽  
Turtle Species ◽  
Green Turtles ◽  
Nesting Beaches ◽  
Turkish Society

The green turtle Chelonia mydas is one of two marine turtle species to nest in Turkey. Its three main nesting beaches are in eastern Turkey, with possibly the densest congregation of nesting turtles in the Mediterranean being found at Kazanli. However, beach erosion, hatchling predation, agricultural encroachment and chemical pollution mean that the future of the Kazanli nest site is uncertain. The Turkish Society for the Protection of Nature (Dogal Hayati Koruma Dernegi) is making valiant efforts to protect all the turtle nesting beaches in Turkey but lacks detailed information on the numbers of nesting turtles on many beaches. This paper describes a short study of nesting turtles at Kazanli during 1990 and makes recommendations for the conservation of the nesting beach.

The Flatback Turtle, Chelonia depressa, in Queensland: Post-Nesting Migration and Feeling Ground Distribution

1983 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 557 ◽  
Author(s):  
CJ Limpus ◽  
CJ Parmenter ◽  
V Baker ◽  
A Fleay
Keyword(s):  
Continental Shelf ◽  
Great Barrier Reef ◽  
Adult Female ◽  
Barrier Reef ◽  
Inshore Water ◽  
Eastern Australia ◽  
North Eastern ◽  
Nesting Beaches ◽  
Feeding Grounds

Between 1968 and 1981, a total of 813 adult female flatback turtles were tagged while nesting on Queensland beaches. Eight have been recovered at a distance, 216-1300 km north of their respective nesting beaches, in waters between the mainland and the Great Barrier Reef. The species' principal feeding grounds seem to be in turbid, shallow inshore water off north-eastern Australia and in the Gulf of Carpentaria; there are no records beyond the continental shelf.

Intake and excretion of arsenicals in green (Chelonia mydas) and hawksbill turtles (Eretmochelys imbricata)

2011 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 19 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tetsuro Agusa ◽  
Kozue Takagi ◽  
Todd W. Miller ◽  
Reiji Kubota ◽  
Yasumi Anan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Feeding Behaviour ◽  
Chelonia Mydas ◽  
Water Soluble ◽  
Marine Animals ◽  
Eretmochelys Imbricata ◽  
Accumulation Pattern ◽  
Turtle Species ◽  
Green Turtles ◽  
Hawksbill Turtles ◽  
Prey Items

Environmental context Although among higher marine animals, relatively high concentration of arsenic and unique distribution of arsenic compounds are found in green (Chelonia mydas) and hawksbill turtles (Eretmochelys imbricata), the accumulation mechanism remains unknown. We examined the accumulation of arsenicals in two turtles from the standpoint of short- and long-term intake and excretion and found that prey items might be important for the arsenic accumulation. This study can provide useful information on the accumulation pattern of arsenic speciation in sea turtles. Abstract We analysed arsenic (As) compounds in the stomach and intestine contents, bile and urine of green (Chelonia mydas) and hawksbill turtles (Eretmochelys imbricata) to understand As accumulation through intake and excretion. Stable isotopes of δ15N and δ13C were also measured for understanding the feeding behaviour dependent accumulation of As. Major As species in gastrointestinal contents were unknown water-soluble As, followed by unextracted As. Concentrations of AB and DMA in the tissues were higher than those in the stomach contents (prey items), indicating high bioaccumulation of these arsenicals. In green turtles, AB concentration was high in bile and increased throughout the gastrointestinal tract, suggesting significant biliary excretion of AB. δ15N was positively correlated with AB level in green turtles, whereas a negative relationship between residual As and δ15N was observed in hawksbill turtles. This study indicates feeding behaviour-dependent accumulation of As compounds in both turtle species for the first time.

scholarly journals Assessing coastal artificial light and potential exposure of wildlife at a national scale: the case of marine turtles in Brazil

2020 ◽  
Vol 29 (4) ◽  
pp. 1135-1152 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liliana P. Colman ◽  
Paulo H. Lara ◽  
Jonathan Bennie ◽  
Annette C. Broderick ◽  
Juliana R. de Freitas ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Nest Site Selection ◽  
Marine Turtle ◽  
Conservation Strategies ◽  
Brazilian Coast ◽  
Light Pollution ◽  
Artificial Light ◽  
Turtle Species ◽  
Marine Turtles ◽  
Light Levels ◽  
Nesting Beaches

AbstractCoastal areas provide critical nesting habitat for marine turtles. Understanding how artificial light might impact populations is key to guide management strategies. Here we assess the extent to which nesting populations of four marine turtle species—leatherback (Dermochelys coriacea), olive ridley (Lepidochelys olivacea), hawksbill (Eretmochelys imbricata) and two subpopulations of loggerhead (Caretta caretta) turtles—are exposed to light pollution across 604 km of the Brazilian coast. We used yearly night-time satellite images from two 5-year periods (1992–1996 and 2008–2012) from the US Air Force Defense Meteorological Satellite Programme (DMSP) to determine the proportion of nesting areas that are exposed to detectable levels of artificial light and identify how this has changed over time. Over the monitored time-frame, 63.7% of the nesting beaches experienced an increase in night light levels. Based on nest densities, we identified 54 reproductive hotspots: 62.9% were located in areas potentially exposed to light pollution. Light levels appeared to have a significant effect on nest densities of hawksbills and the northern loggerhead turtle stock, however high nest densities were also seen in lit areas. The status of all species/subpopulations has improved across the time period despite increased light levels. These findings suggest that (1) nest site selection is likely primarily determined by variables other than light and (2) conservation strategies in Brazil appear to have been successful in contributing to reducing impacts on nesting beaches. There is, however, the possibility that light also affects hatchlings in coastal waters, and impacts on population recruitment may take longer to fully manifest in nesting numbers. Recommendations are made to further this work to provide deeper insights into the impacts of anthropogenic light on marine turtles.

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