Migratory corridor linking Atlantic green turtle, Chelonia mydas, nesting site on Bioko Island, Equatorial Guinea to Ghanaian foraging grounds.

Autor: Mettler E; Department of Biology, Purdue University, Fort Wayne, Indiana, United States of America., Clyde-Brockway CE; Department of Biology, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana, United States of America., Honarvar S; Department of Biology, Purdue University, Fort Wayne, Indiana, United States of America.; Bioko Marine Turtle Program, Malabo, Equatorial Guinea., Paladino FV; Department of Biology, Purdue University, Fort Wayne, Indiana, United States of America.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: PloS one [PLoS One] 2019 Jun 21; Vol. 14 (6), pp. e0213231. Date of Electronic Publication: 2019 Jun 21 (Print Publication: 2019).
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0213231
Abstrakt: This study uses satellite telemetry to track post-nesting movements of endangered green turtles (Chelonia mydas) (n = 6) in the Gulf of Guinea. It identifies a migratory corridor linking breeding grounds of Atlantic green turtles nesting on Bioko Island, Equatorial Guinea, to foraging grounds in the coastal waters of Accra, Ghana. Track lengths of 20-198 days were analyzed, for a total of 536 movement days for the six turtles. Migratory pathways and foraging grounds were identified by applying a switching state space model to locational data, which provides daily position estimates to identify shifts between migrating and foraging behavior. Turtles exhibited a combination of coastal and oceanic migrations pathways that ranged from 957 km to 1,131 km. Of the six turtles, five completed their migration and maintained residency at the same foraging ground near the coastal waters of Accra, Ghana until transmission was lost. These five resident turtles inhabit heavily fished waters and are vulnerable to a variety of anthropogenic threats. The identification of these foraging grounds highlights the importance of these coastal waters for the protection of the endangered Atlantic green turtle.
Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.
Databáze: MEDLINE
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