Journal article
Persistent Leatherback Turtle Migrations Present Opportunities for Conservation
PLoS biology, v 6(7), pp 1408-1416
Jul 2008
PMID: 18630987
Featured in Collection : UN Sustainable Development Goals @ Drexel
Abstract
Effective transboundary conservation of highly migratory marine animals requires international management cooperation as well as clear scientific information about habitat use by these species. Populations of leatherback turtles (
Dermochelys coriacea
) in the eastern Pacific have declined by >90% during the past two decades, primarily due to unsustainable egg harvest and fisheries bycatch mortality. While research and conservation efforts on nesting beaches are ongoing, relatively little is known about this population of leatherbacks' oceanic habitat use and migration pathways. We present the largest multi-year (2004–2005, 2005–2006, and 2007) satellite tracking dataset (12,095 cumulative satellite tracking days) collected for leatherback turtles. Forty-six females were electronically tagged during three field seasons at Playa Grande, Costa Rica, the largest extant nesting colony in the eastern Pacific. After completing nesting, the turtles headed southward, traversing the dynamic equatorial currents with rapid, directed movements. In contrast to the highly varied dispersal patterns seen in many other sea turtle populations, leatherbacks from Playa Grande traveled within a persistent migration corridor from Costa Rica, past the equator, and into the South Pacific Gyre, a vast, low-energy, low-productivity region. We describe the predictable effects of ocean currents on a leatherback migration corridor and characterize long-distance movements by the turtles in the eastern South Pacific. These data from high seas habitats will also elucidate potential areas for mitigating fisheries bycatch interactions. These findings directly inform existing multinational conservation frameworks and provide immediate regions in the migration corridor where conservation can be implemented. We identify high seas locations for focusing future conservation efforts within the leatherback dispersal zone in the South Pacific Gyre.
Satellite tracking data from female leatherback turtles reveal their migration routes in the eastern Pacific and demonstrate how oceanic currents shape their migration corridors, providing a biological basis for conservation strategies.
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Details
- Title
- Persistent Leatherback Turtle Migrations Present Opportunities for Conservation
- Creators
- George L Shillinger - Hopkins Marine Station, Stanford University, Pacific Grove, California, United States of AmericaDaniel M Palacios - Joint Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Research, Honolulu, Hawaii, United States of AmericaHelen Bailey - NOAA/NMFS/SWFSC/Environmental Research Division, Pacific Grove, California, United States of AmericaSteven J Bograd - NOAA/NMFS/SWFSC/Environmental Research Division, Pacific Grove, California, United States of AmericaAlan M Swithenbank - Hopkins Marine Station, Stanford University, Pacific Grove, California, United States of AmericaPhilippe Gaspar - Collecte Localisation Satellites, Direction Océanographie Spatiale, Ramonville, FranceBryan P Wallace - Center for Applied Biodiversity Science, Conservation International, Arlington, Virginia, United States of AmericaJames R Spotila - Department of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States of AmericaFrank V Paladino - Department of Biology, Indiana-Purdue University, Fort Wayne, Indiana, United States of AmericaRotney Piedra - Parque Nacional Marino Las Baulas, Ministerio de Ambiente y Energía, San José, Costa RicaScott A Eckert - Wider Caribbean Sea Turtle Conservation Network, Duke University Marine Laboratory, Beaufort, North Carolina, United States of AmericaBarbara A Block - Hopkins Marine Station, Stanford University, Pacific Grove, California, United States of America
- Publication Details
- PLoS biology, v 6(7), pp 1408-1416
- Publisher
- Public Library of Science; San Francisco, USA
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Language
- English
- Academic Unit
- Biodiversity, Earth, and Environmental Science (BEES)
- Web of Science ID
- WOS:000257971100013
- Scopus ID
- 2-s2.0-48349108959
- Other Identifier
- 991014877679104721
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- Collaboration types
- Domestic collaboration
- International collaboration
- Web of Science research areas
- Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
- Biology