Seleção de locais de nidificação e sucesso de eclosão da tartaruga-de-pente e da tartaruga-cabeçuda (Testudines, Cheloniidae) na Praia de Arembepe, nordeste do Brasil

Abstract

Nest site selection and hatching success of hawksbill and loggerhead sea turtles (Testudines, Cheloniidae) at Arembepe Beach, northeastern Brazil. Nest site selection influences the hatching success of sea turtles and represents a crucial aspect of their reproductive process. Arembepe Beach, in the State of Bahia, northeastern Brazil, is a known nest site for Caretta caretta and Eretmochelys imbricata. Beach vegetation was important in the modulation of nest site selection behavior for both species, but the amount of beach vegetation cover influenced (negatively) hatching success only for the hawksbill, mainly via the increment of non-hatched eggs. Hatching success, outside the tide risk zone, was not influenced by the position of the nests along the beach profile. The pattern of nest distribution by species indicated that management of nests at risk of inundation and erosion by the tide is more important for loggerhead turtles than for hawksbill turtles. Beach vegetation is an important factor in the conservation of these sea turtle species. Nests that are at risk due to tidal inundation and erosion can be translocated to any position along the beach profile without producing any significant effect on hatching success, as long as high densities of beach vegetation cover are avoided for hawksbill nests. It is important to point out that the pattern we report here for distribution of hawksbill nests along the beach profile could be due in part to the influence of pure and hybrid individuals, since there are reports of hybridization among hawksbills and loggerheads to the study site.Keywords: Testudines, Cheloniidae, Caretta caretta, Eretmochelys imbricata, nesting preference, conservation, Brazil. , analisamos a influência da posição do ninho ao longo do perfil da praia e da cobertura vegetal sobre a seleção de locais de desova e o sucesso de eclosão das duas espécies. Caretta caretta desovou preferencialmente em zonas da praia sem vegetação (zona de areia), enquanto E. imbricata não mostrou preferência pela zona de areia nem por locais dotados de cobertura vegetal (zona de vegetação). A vegetação foi importante para o comportamento de seleção de locais de desova para ambas as espécies, mas a quantidade de cobertura vegetal da praia influenciou (negativamente) apenas o sucesso de eclosão de E. imbricata, principalmente por meio do aumento de ovos não-eclodidos. Em locais sem risco de erosão e inundação pela ação da maré, o sucesso de eclosão não sofreu influência da posição dos ninhos ao longo do perfil da praia. O padrão de distribuição dos ninhos por espécie indicou que o manejo dos ninhos sujeitos a inundação e erosão pela ação da maré é mais importante para C. caretta do que para E. imbricata. A vegetação da praia é um fator importante para a preservação dessas espécies de tartarugas marinhas. Os ninhos ameaçados de inundação e erosão poderiam ser transferidos para qualquer outro local ao longo do perfil da praia sem qualquer efeito significativo sobre o sucesso de eclosão, contanto que locais com al...

Marine turtles are not fussy nesters: a novel test of small-scale nest site selection using structure from motion beach terrain information

“…These findings concur with those of previous studies that report high nesting densities on open sand close to vegetation (Karavas et al, 2005; Chen, Cheng & Hong, 2007; Serafini, Lopez & Da Rocha, 2009; Turkozan, Yamamoto & Yilmaz, 2011; Hart et al, 2014; Katselidis et al, 2013b). The rate of nesting abandonment is, however, also generally highest in vegetated areas (Hays & Speakman, 1993; Karavas et al, 2005).…”

Impact of Intrabeach Incubation Substrate Variability on Sea Turtle Reproductive Success

“…Indeed, there was no consistency between parity in nesting success and disparity in hatching success between areas. It is likely that other physical and biological factors, such as beach topography, vegetation cover, and accumulated beach organic material, have a greater impact on the nesting site selection compared to sand characteristics (Garmestani et al 2000; Wood and Bjorndal 2000; Serafini et al 2009; Cuevas et al 2010; Trindade 2012; Patino-Martinez et al 2017; Patrício et al 2018).…”

Do costal erosion and urban development threat loggerhead sea turtle nesting? Implications for sandy beach management

“…Nest site selection has long been one of the main cornerstones of research on the ecology of sea turtles (Miller et al, 2003). As they do not have parental care, nest site selection at different spatial scales is consensually decisive for embryo development, hatchling survival, and reproductive success (Serafini et al, 2009;Hatase and Omuta, 2018;Patino-Martinez et al, 2023). The nesting behavior of sea turtles can be divided into beach selection, emergence of the female, and nest placement (Wood and Bjorndal, 2000).…”