Biology and conservation of marine turtle nesting in the Dominican Republic

The loss of biodiversity has become one of the most pressing issues, which has lead to a growing global concern about the status of the biological resources on which human life depends. In recent decades there has been a decrease in individual populations of many species. In the Caribbean, marine turtle’s nesting rookeries have been reduced considerably, mainly due to human exploitation. A number of rookeries in this region have been studied for several decades and their status is well documented; however, many other Caribbean rookeries remain poorly described. The Dominican Republic (DR) is an area where information on marine turtle nesting activity is scarce and outdated. Surveys in the 1970s and 1980s constituted the main reference on the status of marine turtles in the DR; although more recent reports indicate that these species are under continuous threats. The lack of comprehensive studies and recent information, coupled with the evident threatened status of marine turtles in the country demanded an updated assessment to help target effective conservation actions. The present PhD study aims to identify the main marine turtles nesting rookeries in DR, describing the current spatio-temporal patterns of nesting, and assessing the likely impact of the current threats to these nesting stocks, based on a period of 5 years (2006 - 2010) of systematic survey within a conservation project. For the first time in recent decades we have documented the presence of three marine turtle species (Dermochelys coriacea, Eretmochelys imbricata and Chelonia mydas) still nesting in the DR; although the third species was found nesting in very low numbers. Nesting is concentrated in the protected areas of JNP and Saona Island, with nesting outside these areas being relatively scarce. Comparison of these results with earlier reports indicates that a profound decline appears to have taken place in the last thirty years. Illegal take of eggs was identified as the main threat to marine turtles, particularly on the eastern beaches of JNP. The present study highlights the need for adequate protection and management of these areas for marine turtle conservation in the DR, since the country seemed to be an important marine turtle nesting area in the past. In order to face threats, particularly egg take, an official program of artificial incubation was established to protect turtle clutches at JNP and Saona Island. In the JNP, clutches of the western and eastern beaches of the park (called WB and EB respectively), were incubated in hermetic boxes stored in Park rangers’ huts located in both places. The present study included the assessment of efficiency of this conservation measure through the investigation of how artificial incubation might be influencing the hatching success of clutches and the resultant sex ratios. The results revealed that the incubation method significantly influenced hatching success of clutches. In situ clutches had greater hatching success than those artificially incubated in WB and in EB. On the other hand, the incubation method significantly influenced incubation duration. Clutches artificially incubated in EB had longer incubation duration than in situ clutches and clutches artificially incubated in WB. Clutch relocation is currently the only viable conservation option for clutches on EB due to intense egg take, but steps are needed to ensure that natural sex ratio is not distorted. However, on the WB of JNP, in situ clutch incubation seems possible through beach protection. Hawksbill nesting population of Saona Island also face egg take as a major threat. Hence, a similar official conservation program, including artificial incubation, was also carried out for hawksbill clutches at Saona. In a four-year period study, a total of 400 hawksbill nests were recorded in 5 sampling areas of nesting beaches at the south coast of Saona. No significant effects of artificial incubation in hatching success were detected between years or incubation type. Likewise, there was no significant difference in emergence success between years or incubation type compared to in situ incubation. On the other hand, in 21 of the 22 artificially incubated clutches mean temperature during the thermosensitive period was lower than the pivotal temperature derived from laboratory studies, suggesting a male bias in artificially incubated clutches. Current level of egg take is unsustainable for the long term preservation of this nesting population. The low percentages of female hatchling production inferred from clutch temperature data calls for urgent changes in the conservation strategy adopted in Saona. Studies of in situ hatching success leaded to determine the reproductive value of the western beaches of JNP for the leatherback turtle as well as allowing obtaining data on beach parameters potentially affecting clutch incubation. A total of 64 leatherback clutches spanning three nesting seasons (2007, 2008 and 2009) were studied. The results of this study show that clutches of leatherback turtles in the JNP western beaches presented unusually high hatching success (75.2%) for this species, compared to other rookeries in the Caribbean and elsewhere. This study is particularly relevant in relation to La Cueva beach; this sector hosts 20% of the total clutches laid at western beaches of the Park and demonstrated the highest hatching success levels. However, it is less protected because it is located in the buffer zone out of the Park limits and deserves more protection. Given the exceptional value of hatching success and the current and potential threats affecting leatherback nesting beaches, additional efforts in regulation and management of the protected area are needed. During the conservation project of marine turtles nesting in DR a total of 10 hawksbill females were satellite tagged and tracked after nesting. For the study of the habitat-use patterns nesting hawksbills of Saona Island remained in the adjacent waters to their nesting beaches using small home range areas during internesting intervals. Core activity areas occurred in shallow waters mainly within 200 m isobaths and associated with coral reefs at the eastern-most tip of the island. The home ranges overlapped, showing similar location and extension both across turtles and years. This study highlights the relevance of DR protected areas for the conservation of hawksbill‘s internesting and foraging habitats, showing the need of enforcing existing legislation for the protected areas in the country. The present study also corroborates that the waters off Nicaragua and Honduras are exceptionally important foraging areas for the species in the Caribbean, as well as showing the turtles’ vulnerability in these waters

Satellite-tracking dataset of loggerhead sea turtles tracked from western Mediterranean

[EN] We provide the raw data of 44 satellite-tracked loggerhead sea turtles from different life-stages collected between 2016 and 2018. Depending on life-stage and tag availability a different satellite tag was attached to the loggerhead carapace. Location data were collected using the Argos system. We made publically available for the first time in the Mediterranean: (i) the satellite-tracking data for 17 one-year-aged post-hatchlings of loggerhead sea turtle came from two nests laid on the Mediterranean Spanish coast; (ii) the satellitetracking data for 4 loggerhead nesting females collected from nesting events occurred on the Spanish Mediterranean coast. Besides, another 23 juvenile and adult loggerhead sea turtles were monitored and their data were made also available. Our dataset provide the turtle identity name or number, the date and coordinates of the location data, and the Argos location class associated. Our data contribute to the knowledge about the spatial use of the loggerhead sea turtle in the Mediterranean Sea and could be used in further analysis regarding habitat use and dispersal of this species in the Mediterranean Sea. Specially, nesting females and post-hatchlings data con-tribute to shed light about these life-stages related to nesting events out of the usual nesting range in the western Mediterranean, for which data still remains scarce. Also, data could be compared to further similar research in satellite-tracking loggerhead sea turtles in the Mediterranean basin.This work was supported by Universitat Politecnica de Valencia, LIFE IP INTEMARES [285296], Spanish Ministry of Environment (MITECO) [16MNSV006]. The corresponding author, S. Abalo-Morla, was supported by a Ph.D. grant [FPU15/01823] from Ministerio de Educacion, Cultura y Deporte (Spain). J. Tomas also acknowledges Project EU-LIFE MEDTURTLES and AICO/2021/022 granted by Conselleria d'Innovacio, Universitats, Ciencia i Societat Digital, Generalitat Valenciana. Funding for open access charge: Universitat Politecnica de Valencia.Abalo-Morla, S.; Belda, E.; Tomás, J.; Crespo-Picazo, JL.; Marco, A.; Revuelta, O. (2022). Satellite-tracking dataset of loggerhead sea turtles tracked from western Mediterranean. Data in Brief. 43:1-5. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dib.2022.108432154

Assessing the use of marine protected areas by loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) tracked from the western Mediterranean.

Up to date 264 Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) have been declared in the western Mediterranean Sea. The management plans of 25 of these MPAs include the loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta) as a priority species to protect. However, the actual use of these MPAs by the species remains unknown. Therefore, it is important to assess their contribution to loggerhead conservation in the area. To this end, satellite tracking data of 103 loggerhead turtles of varying sizes and life stages released in Spanish Mediterranean waters and Southern Tyrrhenian Sea over the 2003-2018 period were herein used. Home range and use of MPAs by tracked loggerhead turtles were analysed using post-processed state-space model locations. The tracked turtles visited several Mediterranean MPAs, but barely used them (mean percentage of monitoring time = 12.6 ± 18.2 %). There was very little overlap between turtle's core areas and tracks with the protected areas. Indeed, most of the core areas and high-density areas estimated (>85 %) were not included within any of the MPAs. Furthermore, less than 5 % of the Mediterranean MPAs were used by any tracked loggerhead sea turtles. Most of these MPAs have no protection measures that focus on this species. Loggerheads mainly use wide oceanic zones and international waters, which are difficult to protect. A high-use core area was identified for loggerhead turtles, located at the western waters of the Algerian Basin, an important fishing area outside any designated MPA and with no protection measures that focus on marine turtle conservation. We conclude that existing MPAs in the western Mediterranean may not contribute enough to loggerhead turtle conservation. We propose potential MPAs designations to be considered for loggerhead sea turtle conservation in the Mediterranean Sea at the Alboran Sea, the Algerian basin, the Northern area of the Strait of Sicily, Northeast Tunisian waters, waters around Malta, waters at the Tyrrhenian Sea and at the Ionian Sea

Nesting range expansion of loggerhead turtles in the Mediterranean: phenology, spatial distribution and conservation implications.

Global warming is affecting habitat quality and availability on our planet and some species are predicted or are by now changing their distribution range. Here we show that loggerhead turtles have already started to expand their nesting range into the Western Mediterranean, which has until recently hosted only sporadic nests. We compiled information on nesting activity from beaches surrounding the Western Mediterranean and collected metadata on loggerhead turtle nests in Spain, France, Italy, and Tunisia between 2010 and 2020 to provide an exhaustive overview on the phenomenon of emerging new nest sites for loggerhead turtles. The number of recorded nests has increased drastically since 2013 from 1 to 3 nests/year to a record number of 84 registered in 2020. While this increase may partly be explained by grown awareness and reporting by citizens, there is no doubt of an upward trend in nesting activity. The nests are unevenly distributed over the study area with most nests occurring on the coasts of the warmer Tyrrhenian Sea. A hotspot analysis identified beaches in SW Italy, SE Sardinia, and NW Tunisia with statistically significant clustering of nests. Within these hotspots, three beaches in SW Italy and one in Tunisia had nests at least four out of the five last years. Nesting phenology corresponds to that of Eastern Mediterranean rookeries, and mean hatching success of naturally incubating, non-manipulated nests was 66 %, although there was variability across the region. Mean incubation durations also varied between countries indicating a diversity in inferred sex ratios, with sufficient female production to foster future colonisation of this region. Unfortunately, these beaches are already under high tourist pressure and subject to intense coastal development, imposing many threats to the females, eggs, and hatchlings. Thus, while this study reveals the unique opportunity to witness and study an ongoing new colonisation process in loggerhead turtles, it also calls for urgent proactive conservation actions to mitigate these threats and allow the turtles to establish new rookeries

Survival and dispersal routes of head-started loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta) post-hatchlings in the Mediterranean Sea

[EN] Several loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta) nesting events have been recorded along Spain's Mediterranean coast, outside its known nesting range, in recent years. In view of the possible expansion of its nesting range and considering the conservation status of this species, management measures like nest protection and head-start programs have been implemented. To study the dispersal behavior and survival of head-started loggerheads, 19 post-hatchlings from three nesting events were satellite tracked after their release in three consecutive years (2015-2017). This paper presents the first study of survival probabilities and dispersal movements of loggerhead post-hatchlings in the Mediterranean basin. Monitored post-hatchlings dispersed over large areas using variable routes, mainly off the continental shelf. Nonetheless, post-hatchlings dispersed to high-productivity warmer areas during the coldest months of monitoring. These areas might be optimum for their survival and development. We observed differences regarding dispersal orientation and routes among individuals, even from the same nest, release date, and location. Our survival models contributed to improving current survival estimates for sea turtle post-hatchlings. We observed a high probability of survival in head-started individuals during the first months after release, usually the most critical period after reintroduction. The data did not support an effect of habitat (neritic or oceanic) in survival, or an effect of the region (Balearic sea or Alboran sea) in survival probability. Differences in survival between nests were observed. These differences might be related to parasitic infections suffered during the head-starting period. This study shows that nest management measures may contribute to the conservation and range expansion of the loggerhead turtle population in the western Mediterranean.This satellite study was funded by Universitat Politecnica de Valencia, Ministerio de Agricultura y Medio Ambiente (ref: 16MNSV006), Ministerio de Economia, Industria y Competitividad (ref: CGL2011-30413), Fundacion CRAM, Fundacion Hombre y Territorio and Eduardo J. Belda. Corresponding author, S. Abalo, was supported by a Ph.D. grant (FPU) from Ministerio de Educacion, Cultura y Deporte (Spain). J. Tomas is also supported by project Prometeo II (2015) of Generalitat Valenciana and project INDICIT of the European Commission, Environment Directorate-General. We are extremely thankful to the entities that have collaborated: we thank all professionals at the Oceanografic, especially at the ARCA Rehabilitation Center, for their many efforts and whole-hearted dedication to the best animal care. In particular, we are grateful to the Conselleria d'Agricultura, Medi Ambient, Canvi Climatic i Desenvolupament Rural of the Valencia Community Regional Government. We also thank the professionals at Centro de Recuperacion de Animales Marinos (CRAM) for their dedication and animal care. We are thankful to the Marine Zoology Unit of the University of Valencia, NGO Xaloc, EQUINAC, Aquarium of Sevilla, Donana Biological Station (EBD-CSIC) and to involved professionals at Consejeria de Medio Ambiente y Ordenacion del Territorio (CMAOT) of Junta de Andalucia, especially at the Andalusian Marine Environment Management Center (CEGMA) for their efforts with animal care, logistics for release events and necropsy of "Rabiosa". We are particularly grateful to the people who called 112 to report a nesting event and to the nest custody volunteers. Thanks are due to the staff of Parador de El Saler for volunteering logistical support. The authors wish to acknowledge the use of the Maptool program for analysis and graphics in this paper. Maptool is a product of SEATURTLE.ORG (Information is available at www.seaturtle.org). Also, we acknowledge the use of the Douglas Argos Filter (DAF) utility in Movebank (www.movebank.org) and especially David Douglas for his help and recommendations. Finally, we thank the reviewers for their reviewing efforts.Abalo-Morla, S.; Marco, A.; Tomás, J.; Revuelta, O.; Abella, E.; Marco, V.; Crespo-Picazo, J.... (2018). Survival and dispersal routes of head-started loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta) post-hatchlings in the Mediterranean Sea. Marine Biology. 165(3). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-018-3306-2S1653Abella P, Marco A, Martins S, Hawkes LA (2016) Is this what a climate change-resilient population of marine turtles looks like? 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Tortuga carey – Eretmochelys imbricata (Linnaeus, 1766)

Reptiles - Orden Quelonios - Familia Cheloniidae en la Enciclopedia Virtual de Vertebrados Españoles, http://www.vertebradosibericos.org/. Versiones anteriores: 25-11-2010A comprehensive review of the natural history of the Hawksbill turtle Eretmochelys imbricata in Spain.Peer reviewe

Tracks of passive drifter buoys and satellite traked turtles.

<p>(A, B) Tracks of passive drifter buoys on departure from the (A) Jaragua National Park or (B) Saona Island (starting point indicated with black circles). Red lines show tracks on departure during the nesting season. Figure (C) shows the migrations of ten satellite tracked adult female hawksbill turtles <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0066037#pone.0066037-Hawkes1" target="_blank">[102]</a>. White crosses show deployment locations for satellite tracked turtles in Jaragua and Saona Island. Pale grey lines show the extent of the Exclusive Economic Zone for each Caribbean country. Note part (C) is to a different scale.</p

DataSheet_1_Assessment of the interactions between cetaceans and fisheries at the south of the Cetacean Migration Corridor and neighboring waters (Western Mediterranean).docx

The Cetacean Migration Corridor is an important marine protected area for cetacean species in the Western Mediterranean, and part of its waters constitute the main fishing grounds for the Valencia region (East Spain) fishing fleet. Here we aim to assess the interactions between all active fisheries operating in the waters of the Valencia region and the cetacean species inhabiting this area. A total of 282 face-to-face interviews (51.37% of the total fleet) to fishers were held on 20 ports at the study area to gather information about cetacean by-catch and all types of interactions between fisheries and cetaceans. The interviewed bottom trawlers (n = 148 boats) reported a monthly by-catch rate (C) of 0.01 dolphins per vessel. Bottom trawling vessels operating at neritic zones only reported by-catch of common bottlenose dolphin (C = 0.009), while those fishing at oceanic zones by-caught striped dolphin (C = 0.006) and common bottlenose dolphin (C = 0.003). The interviewed artisanal fishers (n = 114 boats), the second most important fishery in the study area, only reported one dolphin by-catch event, but 90 of these boats communicated continued negative interactions with the common bottlenose dolphin, causing gear damage and catch take. The interviewed vessels gave an estimation of their annual economic loss produced by this interaction (mean ± SD: 2,998.10 ± 2095.02 € per boat). Other fisheries operating in the Valencia region were purse-seiners (n = 15 boats) and pelagic longlines, a fishery that has almost disappeared in the study area (n = 5 boats). The first one had the highest estimated dolphin by-catch rate (C= 0.04) and mainly interacted with common bottlenose dolphin, but also with striped dolphin. The information gathered from interviews was complimented with long-term stranding data (1990–2020). Despite the fact that only 7.80% of all recorded stranded cetaceans showed fisheries interaction signs, 26.72% of the common bottlenose dolphins recorded showed evidence of this interaction, thus confirming that it is the cetacean species most affected by fisheries in the area. Records of stranded striped dolphin (6.45%) also showed evidence of fisheries interaction. Based on both dolphin by-catch and gear damage, management plans are needed in the area to ensure cetacean conservation and also fisheries sustainability in waters inside and around marine protected areas at the Spain’s Mediterranean.</p