Exceptional sea turtle nest records in 2011 suggest an underestimated nesting potential in Sicily (Italy)

Casale, Paolo; Palilla, Giuseppe; Salemi, Alessandro; Napoli, Angelo; Prinzi, Maurizio; Genco, Laura; Bonaviri, Davide; Mastrogiacomo, Angela; Oliverio, Marco; Valvo, Mario Lo

doi:10.13128/acta_herpetol-10725

Cited by 1 publication

(1 citation statement)

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“…During the latter half of the 20th century, loggerhead turtles nesting in the Mediterranean Sea were primarily confined to the eastern basin (Casale et al, 2018, and references therein), with occasional low levels of nesting in the central basin (Casale et al, 2012;Jribi & Bradai, 2014;Laurent et al, 1990;Mingozzi et al, 2008). While a few isolated nests have been reported in the westernmost part of the Mediterranean Sea since 1870 (Tomás et al, 2008, and references therein), consistent nesting was hindered during this period due to sand temperatures being consistently below 25 C during most summer months (Pike, 2013;Cardona et al, 2022).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Identifying the foraging grounds of the new loggerhead turtle nesters in the western Mediterranean

Cardona,

Abalo‐Morla,

Cani

et al. 2024

Aquatic Conservation

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The western Mediterranean Sea has traditionally served as a primary foraging ground for juvenile loggerhead turtles from three distinct regional management units: the North‐western Atlantic, the Mediterranean and Cape Verde. Nesting activities were sporadic. Recently, nesting activity on the beaches of eastern Spain has increased, due to warmer sand and water temperatures during the summer months. The study has integrated stable isotope analysis of carbon (C), nitrogen (N) and sulphur (S) with satellite telemetry to identify the foraging grounds of these new colonizers nesting on Spanish beaches. Results indicate that the majority of these adult females forage oceanically in the Algerian Basin, with a few exhibiting distinct stable isotope signals, tentatively associated with foraging in shallow coastal areas in the central Mediterranean Sea. The dominance of oceanic foragers in this new population is noteworthy, given the Algerian Basin's oligotrophic nature. This contrasts with the prevalence of neritic foraging in adult females nesting in the central and eastern Mediterranean Sea. The use of the Algerian Basin as a foraging ground for adult loggerhead turtles exposes them to bycatch from drifting longlines. The authorities should refrain from increasing bluefin quotas imposed on longliners in the Algerian Basin unless the fishery avoids using squid as bait and agrees to deploy hooks deeper than 25 m to reduce loggerhead turtle bycatch.

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