Lamont Margaret M, Ingram Dianne, Baker Todd, Weigel Matt, Shamblin Brian M
Wetland and Aquatic Research Center U.S. Geological Survey Gainesville Florida USA.
Deepwater Horizon Gulf Restoration Office U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Fairhope Alabama USA.
Ecol Evol. 2023 Aug 21;13(8):e10448. doi: 10.1002/ece3.10448. eCollection 2023 Aug.
Globally, six of the seven sea turtle species are threatened or endangered and as such, monitoring reproductive activity for these species is necessary for effective population recovery. Remote beaches provide a challenge to conducting these surveys, which often results in data gaps that can hamper management planning. Throughout the summer of 2022, aerial surveys were conducted over the Chandeleur Islands in the Gulf of Mexico. Turtle crawls were photographed for subsequent review by 10 expert observers. Whenever possible, ground surveys were conducted, and samples of unhatched eggs or dead hatchlings were collected. A summary of historic reports of sea turtle nesting activity at this site was also compiled. On 11 days between May 4, 2022, and July 30, 2022, photographs of 55 potential sea turtle crawls were taken. Observers identified 54 of those as being made by a sea turtle. There was high-to-moderate certainty that 16 of those crawls were nests, that 14 were made by loggerheads, and that two were made by Kemp's ridleys. Observers were least certain of species identification when surveys were conducted during rainy weather. Genetic analyses based on mitochondrial and nuclear DNA were conducted on samples from five nests and those analyses confirmed that three nests were laid by Kemp's ridleys and two were laid by loggerheads. Historic records from the Chandeleur Islands substantiate claims that the Chandeleurs have supported sea turtle nesting activity for decades; however, the consistency of this activity remains unknown. Our aerial surveys, particularly when coupled with imaging, were a useful tool for documenting nesting activity on these remote islands. Future monitoring programs at this site could benefit from a standardized aerial survey program with a seaplane so trends in nesting activity could be determined particularly as the beach undergoes restoration.
在全球范围内，七种海龟中有六种受到威胁或濒临灭绝，因此，监测这些物种的繁殖活动对于有效恢复种群数量至关重要。偏远海滩给开展这些调查带来了挑战，这往往导致数据缺口，可能会妨碍管理规划。在2022年整个夏季，对墨西哥湾的钱德勒群岛进行了空中调查。拍摄海龟爬行痕迹，供10名专家观察员随后审查。只要有可能，就会进行地面调查，并收集未孵化的卵或死亡幼龟的样本。还汇编了该地点海龟筑巢活动的历史报告摘要。在2022年5月4日至7月30日的11天里，拍摄了55处潜在海龟爬行痕迹的照片。观察员将其中54处确定为海龟留下的。有高到中等程度的把握确定其中16处爬行痕迹是巢穴，14处是蠵龟留下的，2处是肯氏龟留下的。在雨天进行调查时，观察员对物种鉴定的把握最小。对来自五个巢穴的样本进行了基于线粒体和核DNA的基因分析，分析证实三个巢穴是肯氏龟所产，两个是蠵龟所产。钱德勒群岛的历史记录证实了钱德勒群岛数十年来一直支持海龟筑巢活动的说法；然而，这种活动的持续性仍然未知。我们的空中调查，特别是与成像相结合时，是记录这些偏远岛屿上筑巢活动的有用工具。该地点未来的监测计划可以受益于使用水上飞机的标准化空中调查计划，以便确定筑巢活动的趋势，特别是在海滩进行修复时。
