In late October, a collaborative team of researchers from Two Oceans Aquarium Foundation and Upwell took a boat into the swift Agulhas Current, the southwest boundary current of the Indian Ocean that runs down the east coast of South Africa. There, they released 12 tiny loggerhead turtles with satellite tags attached to their carapace (top shells) in an effort to understand how these turtles are using this oceanic highway. See where these turtles have traveled over their first weeks in the ocean!
Nuno Vasco Rodrigues is a Marine Biologist and researcher at MARE IPLeiria. He was named “Conservation Photographer of the Year” by Ocean Geographic Society in 2021. For the past three years, Nuno has photographed Upwell’s work tagging juvenile loggerhead turtles in the Azores Archipelago in partnership with the COSTA Project and the University of the Azores, which is part of Upwell’s Lost Years Initiative. Nuno took some time to chat with us about the highlights and challenges of documenting sea turtle releases underwater.
With a team of collaborators, we tested new specially-designed prototypes of Lotek microsatellite tags on 160 juvenile sea turtles of four species in the North Atlantic. The data from these tags was published in a new article, "Novel Microsatellite Tags Hold Promise for Illuminating the Lost Years in Four Sea Turtle Species." We sat down with lead-author Tony Candela to talk about this article, his process as lead-author, and the important implications of these findings for the bio-logging community.
When fishermen and researchers collaborate, they create opportunities to amplify efforts for the research and conservation of sea turtles. This past spring, Upwell participated in these efforts by providing a satellite tag for Liam Neythan, a leatherback sea turtle that was saved in Sinaloa, Mexico. Our collaborators, the fishers Edmundo Rafael Garcías Burgos and Mariano García Olivas, as well as Dr. Alan Zavala Norzagaray and the CIIDIR IPN Unidad Sinaloa are the key collaborators and heroes in this story.
While the effects of HABs on marine mammals have been well documented, much less is known about their potential impact on sea turtles. Under the mentorship of Upwell Wildlife Veterinarian Dr. Heather Harris, Cal Poly veterinary student Brenna Eikenbary is investigating the likelihood of HAB exposure among sea turtles stranded along the West Coast since 1990.
Last year in July, we deployed 10 micro-satellite tags on juvenile loggerheads in partnership with the Aquarium La Rochelle in France. Of this cohort, all of which are named after European scientists, the tags on turtles Archimede, Nicolas Copernic and Charles Darwin have continued to transmit for an astounding 312 days and counting (a new record)! As we prepare to release another set of turtles, we wanted to take a moment to reflect on some of the observations from this first deployment, and how they help us to take the next steps in our research.
Why do we tag turtles? Upwell contributed our sea turtle telemetry data and expertise to the global UN-endorsed research project, MegaMove, which involves almost 400 scientists from over 50 countries in an effort to identify the most critical locations in our global oceans for better marine conservation efforts. The research found that the targets of the current BBNJ Treaty - signed by 115 countries but still to be ratified – is a step in the right direction and will be key to assist conservation but insufficient to cover all critical areas used by threatened marine megafauna, suggesting that additional threat mitigation measures are also needed.
Six months ago, Upwell and Two Oceans Aquarium deployed micro-satellite tags on 12 loggerhead turtles rehabilitated at the Turtle Conservation Centre. We watched their progress with many questions and hypotheses. While it will take far longer than six months to answer any of these questions fully, we made some fascinating observations that allow us to ask even more questions!
In late October, a collaborative team of researchers from Two Oceans Aquarium Foundation and Upwell took a boat into the swift Agulhas Current, the southwest boundary current of the Indian Ocean that runs down the east coast of South Africa. There, they released 12 tiny loggerhead turtles with satellite tags attached to their carapace (top shells) in an effort to understand how these turtles are using this oceanic highway. See where these turtles have traveled over their first weeks in the ocean!
Upwell’s Executive Director, Dr. George Shillinger, recognized that the rehabilitated early-stage juveniles at the Aquarium La Rochelle CESTM were perfect candidates for Lotek microsatellite tags and invited CESTM to join Upwell’s Lost Years Initiative, kicking off the collaboration with the tagging of 10 juvenile loggerheads in late July. Over the past two months, the turtles have shown a range of behavior, including surprisingly deep dives for turtles of such a young age!
Each year, the Upwell and NOAA Fisheries team conduct aerial and vessel-based surveys for leatherback sea turtles off the US West Coast. The data from these surveys can be put into action to protect the critically endangered West Pacific leatherback population. During August and September of 2024 the collaborative team documented their efforts in an engaging web series called Looking for Leatherbacks.
