Site fixity in Caribbean green turtle
Carr A and Carr MH. 1972. Site fixity in Caribbean green turtle. Ecology. 53(3):425-429
Although tagged green turtles that return to Tortuguero Beach to nest show definite site fixity, their site discrimination is not absolute. The modal distance between successive returns, whether after the 2-week internesting period of a given season or after the 2- or 3-year remigration interval between nesting seasons, is .2 km; average separation of return points is 1.2 km. In view of the steady reworking of the Tortuguero foreshore by wind, waves, and longshore currents,it seems unlikely that olfaction could be an important cue in landfall and nest-site discrimination, and new delimitation of the homing goal reinforces that belief. The straying of nesting females as far as 7 km from previous nesting sites suggests how colony proliferation may occur. No Tortuguero turtle has ever been found nesting on any other shore.
- Type
- Journal Article
- Authors
- Carr, Archie; Carr, Marjorie
- Units
- SFCN
- Keywords
- green turtle, Habitat, Nesting Seasons, Range, tagging turtles