The value of long-term, community-based monitoring of marine turtle nesting: a study in the Lamu archipelago, Kenya. Issue 1 (1st August 2017)
- Record Type:
- Journal Article
- Title:
- The value of long-term, community-based monitoring of marine turtle nesting: a study in the Lamu archipelago, Kenya. Issue 1 (1st August 2017)
- Main Title:
- The value of long-term, community-based monitoring of marine turtle nesting: a study in the Lamu archipelago, Kenya
- Authors:
- Olendo, Mike I.
Okemwa, Gladys M.
Munga, Cosmas N.
Mulupi, Lilian K.
Mwasi, Lily D.
Mohamed, Hassan B.
Sibanda, Mxolisi
Ong'anda, Harrison O. - Abstract:
- Abstract: Monitoring of nesting beaches is often the only feasible and low-cost approach for assessing sea turtle populations. We investigated spatio-temporal patterns of sea turtle nesting activity monitored over 17 successive years in the Lamu archipelago, Kenya. Community-based patrols were conducted on 26 stretches of beach clustered in five major locations. A total of 2, 021 nests were recorded: 1, 971 (97.5%) green turtle Chelonia mydas nests, 31 (1.5%) hawksbill Eretmochelys imbricata nests, 8 (0.4%) olive ridley Lepidochelys olivacea nests and 11 (0.5%) unidentified nests. Nesting occurred year-round, increasing during March–July, when 74% of nests were recorded. A stable trend in mean annual nesting densities was observed in all locations. Mean clutch sizes were 117.7 ± SE 1 eggs (range 20–189) for green turtles, 103 ± SE 6 eggs (range 37–150) for hawksbill turtles, and 103 ± SE 6 eggs (range 80–133) for olive ridley turtles. Curved carapace length for green turtles was 65–125 cm, and mean annual incubation duration was 55.5 ± SE 0.05 days. The mean incubation duration for green turtle nests differed significantly between months and seasons but not locations. The hatching success (pooled data) was 81.3% (n = 1, 841) and was higher for in situ nests (81.0 ± SE 1.5%) compared to relocated nests (77.8 ± SE 1.4%). The results highlight the important contribution of community-based monitoring in Kenya to sustaining the sea turtle populations of the Western Indian OceanAbstract: Monitoring of nesting beaches is often the only feasible and low-cost approach for assessing sea turtle populations. We investigated spatio-temporal patterns of sea turtle nesting activity monitored over 17 successive years in the Lamu archipelago, Kenya. Community-based patrols were conducted on 26 stretches of beach clustered in five major locations. A total of 2, 021 nests were recorded: 1, 971 (97.5%) green turtle Chelonia mydas nests, 31 (1.5%) hawksbill Eretmochelys imbricata nests, 8 (0.4%) olive ridley Lepidochelys olivacea nests and 11 (0.5%) unidentified nests. Nesting occurred year-round, increasing during March–July, when 74% of nests were recorded. A stable trend in mean annual nesting densities was observed in all locations. Mean clutch sizes were 117.7 ± SE 1 eggs (range 20–189) for green turtles, 103 ± SE 6 eggs (range 37–150) for hawksbill turtles, and 103 ± SE 6 eggs (range 80–133) for olive ridley turtles. Curved carapace length for green turtles was 65–125 cm, and mean annual incubation duration was 55.5 ± SE 0.05 days. The mean incubation duration for green turtle nests differed significantly between months and seasons but not locations. The hatching success (pooled data) was 81.3% (n = 1, 841) and was higher for in situ nests (81.0 ± SE 1.5%) compared to relocated nests (77.8 ± SE 1.4%). The results highlight the important contribution of community-based monitoring in Kenya to sustaining the sea turtle populations of the Western Indian Ocean region. … (more)
- Is Part Of:
- Oryx. Volume 53:Issue 1(2019)
- Journal:
- Oryx
- Issue:
- Volume 53:Issue 1(2019)
- Issue Display:
- Volume 53, Issue 1 (2019)
- Year:
- 2019
- Volume:
- 53
- Issue:
- 1
- Issue Sort Value:
- 2019-0053-0001-0000
- Page Start:
- 71
- Page End:
- 80
- Publication Date:
- 2017-08-01
- Subjects:
- Clutch size, -- community-based monitoring, -- green turtle, -- hatching success, -- hawksbill turtle, -- incubation duration, -- sea turtles, -- Western Indian Ocean
Wildlife conservation -- Periodicals
Nature conservation -- Periodicals
639.9 - Journal URLs:
- http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayJournal?jid=ORX ↗
- DOI:
- 10.1017/S0030605317000771 ↗
- Languages:
- English
- ISSNs:
- 0030-6053
- Deposit Type:
- Legaldeposit
- View Content:
- Available online (eLD content is only available in our Reading Rooms) ↗
- Physical Locations:
- British Library STI - ELD Digital store
- Ingest File:
- 9065.xml