To further describe movement patterns and distribution of East Pacific green turtles (Chelonia mydas agassizii) and to determine threat levels for this species within the Eastern Pacific. In order to do this we combined published data from existing flipper tagging and early satellite tracking studies with data from an additional 12 satellite tracked green turtles (1996-2006). Three of these were tracked from their foraging grounds in the Gulf of California along the east coast of the Baja California peninsula to their breeding grounds in Michoacán (1337-2928 km). In addition, three post-nesting females were satellite tracked from Colola beach, Michoacán to their foraging grounds in southern Mexico and Central America (941.3-3020 km). A further six turtles were tracked in the Gulf of California within their foraging grounds giving insights into the scale of ranging behaviour. Turtles undertaking long-distance migrations showed a tendency to follow the coastline. Turtles tracked within foraging grounds showed that foraging individuals typically ranged up to 691.6 km (maximum) from release site location. Additionally, we carried out threat analysis (using the cumulative global human impact in the Eastern Pacific) clustering pre-existing satellite tracking studies from Galapagos, Costa Rica, and data obtained from this study; this indicated that turtles foraging and nesting in Central American waters are subject to the highest anthropogenic impact. Considering that turtles from all three rookeries were found to migrate towards Central America, it is highly important to implement conservation plans in Central American coastal areas to ensure the survival of the remaining green turtles in the Eastern Pacific. Finally, by combining satellite tracking data from this and previous studies, and data of tag returns we created the best available distributional patterns for this particular sea turtle species, which emphasized that conservation measures in key areas may have positive consequences on a regional scale.
Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, Cornwall, United Kingdom;Biology Department, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States of America;Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, Cornwall, United Kingdom;SEATURTLE.org, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America;Instituto de Investigaciones sobre los Recursos Naturales, Universidad Michoacána de San Nicolas de Hidalgo, Morelia, Michoacán, Mexico;Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, Cornwall, United Kingdom;NOAA Fisheries, Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, United States of America;Instituto Nacional de Ecología, Dirección General de Vida Silvestre, Secretaria de Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales, Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico;NOAA—National Marine Fisheries Service, Southwest Fisheries Science Center, La Jolla Shores Dr., La Jolla, California, United States of America;Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, Cornwall, United Kingdom;California Academy of Sciences, Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, California, United States of America
Recommended Citation:
Catherine E. Hart,Gabriela S. Blanco,Michael S. Coyne,et al. Multinational Tagging Efforts Illustrate Regional Scale of Distribution and Threats for East Pacific Green Turtles (Chelonia mydas agassizii)[J]. PLOS ONE,2015-01-01,10(2)