Sea Turtle Nesting in National Parks of the Southeast Region
Shabica SV. 1979. Sea Turtle Nesting in National Parks of the Southeast Region. Reports to the Superintendent Number 2. Coastal Field Research Laboratory
A monitoring program has been designed to systematically survey all coastal national parks of the Southeast region to determine where sea turtles nest, when nesting activities take place, and to estimate relative nesting turtle population sizes through time. The monitoring system is passive in nature. While on patrol, if a turtle crawl or nest is observed, the ranger fills out the provided survey forms contained in a small notebook with pertinent observations . Four species of sea turtles , all of which are threatened or endangered, are known to nest on beaches in national parks of the Southeast region. Loggerhead (Caretta caretta), Green (Chelonia mydas), Hawksbill (Eretmochelys imbricata), and Leatherback (Dermochelys coriacea) nests have been observed in 9 of the 17 coastal parks , seashores or national monuments. The results for the program, which began in 1977, are discussed.
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- Shabica, Stephen
- Date of Issue
- 1979
- Publisher
- Coastal Field Research Laboratory
- Units
- BUIS , GUIS
- Keywords
- Animal Studies, Animals, Cheloniidae, Dermochelyidae, Gulf Islands National Seashore FL - MS, Nesting, Nests, Sea Turtles, Southeast Region, Testudines, Tortoises, Turtles