Leatherbacks from the Southatlantic
A project of PRICTMA in conjunction with the partners and sponsors detailed below.
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| Name | Species | Life Stage | Release Date | Last Location | Days Transmitted |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zoe | Leatherback | Adult | 2006-10-29 | 2008-09-08 | 680 |
| 72684 | Leatherback | adult | 2010-04-06 | 2013-05-03 | 1123 |
| Gioconda | Leatherback | adult | 2010-04-06 | 2012-06-12 | 798 |
| 72685 | Leatherback | Adult | 2012-03-25 | 2012-08-29 | 157 |
| NACHA | Leatherback | Adult | 2012-03-25 | 2012-06-12 | 79 |
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Introduction
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Leatherback turtles are critically endangered due mainly to by-catch mortality in fisheries, but also to overharvest of eggs and meat. It is known that this highly migratory species can travel across the Atlantic. Satellite telemetry of leatherback turtles in the Northern Atlantic has shown wide-ranging migrations into oceanic waters with extensive commercial fishing activities as well as coastal and shelf waters with fixed fishing gear; however information on travel routes from southern regions within the Atlantic basin is lacking. Incidental capture numbers of leatherbacks in the South-western Atlantic (off the coast of Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina) are alarming. The project aims are to carry out the tracking of leatherback turtles incidentally captured by commercial and/or artisanal fisheries (any sex or size could be possible)in order to provide new information on leatherbacks movements and migratory destinations. This study represents the first effort to document movements of leatherbacks from feeding grounds and /or migratory corridors along the South-western Atlantic Ocean. This project is part of a transatlantic cooperation initiative to increase the knowledge of movements of leatherbacks in the Atlantic basin in order to contribute towards the identification of hot-spots of interaction between leatherbacks and fisheries and also emphasize the importance of international cooperation for conservation.
Project Partners
WWF - Latin American Marine Turtle Program; Caribbean Conservation Corporation; Proyecto Karumbe;Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique(CNRS); Centre d'Ecologie et Physiologie Energetique (CEPE); UICN-France; WWF-Gabon; WWF-France:Guyanas Program; Bureau regional du Programme Kudu; PRICTMA, University of Wales Swansea, Projeto Tamar, ANAI, DUKE Center for Marine Conservation, Canadian Sea Turtle Research Project, Dalhousie University, Fundacion Vida Silvestre
Project Sponsors
PRICTMA (Regional Program for Sea Turtle Research and Conservation of Argentina)
FVSA ( Fundaciòn Vida Silvestre Argentina)
CMS (Convention on Migratory Species);
WWF-Netherlands;
WWF-Germany;
WWF-UK;
WWF-US