Amoroso M. G.

Cerracchio C.

De Carlo E.

Degli Uberti B.

Di Nocera F.

Esposito E.

Esposito M.

Fiorito F.

Fusco G.

Iaccarino D.

Lambiase S.

Lucifora G.

Serra F.

English

Caretta Caretta are endangered sea turtles leaving in the Mediterranean Sea. We
 carried out a study on 195 sea turtles stranded along the coast of Southern Italy,
 evaluating anthropogenic and opportunistic factors affecting animal health
 status and probably threatening the species. More than 60% of the animals
 showed body injuries, mainly caused by marine traffic and fishing. Ingestion of
 marine litter of various origins was observed in the digestive tract of 38.5% of the
 turtles investigated. Chelonid herpesvirus 5 was detected (for the first time in this
 basin) in 10.8% of the turtles, which were however free from fibropapillomatosis.
 Analyses on trace elements showed a time-dependent reduction in the mean
 concentrations of Cd and Hg, a decrease in the levels of Pb, and a time
dependent increase of As. Particularly, a site-dependent accumulation of As
 was detected in turtles from the coasts of Calabria. There is a significant
 correlation between the levels of As in the kidney of Campania turtles and
 their straight-line carapace length, indicating a size-dependent accumulation of
 this metal. Overall, besides dangerous debris items, high levels of trace elements
 may weaken the immune system of Caretta caretta, the most common turtle of
 the Mediterranean Sea, making it more likely vulnerable to viruses

Archivio della ricerca - Università degli studi di Napoli Federico II

Investigation on anthropogenic and opportunistic factors relevant to the incidence of stranded loggerhead sea turtle Caretta caretta along South Tyrrhenian coasts

https://www.iris.unina.it/bitstream/11588/926263/1/Serra%20et%20al.%2c%202023.pdf

Investigation on anthropogenic and opportunistic factors relevant to the incidence of stranded loggerhead sea turtle Caretta caretta along South Tyrrhenian coasts

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Archivio della ricerca - Università degli studi di Napoli Federico II