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Your search keyword '"Whitesell, Mattie J."' showing total 2 results
Start Over Author "Whitesell, Mattie J." Topic sea turtles
2 results on '"Whitesell, Mattie J."'

1. First Time's a Charm? Loggerhead Neophyte Mothers Have Higher Hatch Success.

Author

Carroll, John M., Whitesell, Mattie J., Hunter, Elizabeth A., and Rostal, David C.

Subjects
*EGG incubation, *LOGGERHEAD turtle, *MOTHERS, *SEA turtles, *SUCCESS
Abstract

Caretta caretta (Loggerhead Sea Turtle) is a globally threatened sea turtle species that nests on United States Atlantic coast beaches. While several environmental factors influence egg incubation and hatching success, maternal identity may also play an important role and has been overlooked. New molecular advances, such as ongoing genetic capture-recapture using eggshells, allow the identification of individual females using fresh eggshells, which can then be used to track nesting and hatching success across individual females. Across 2 consecutive nesting seasons, we monitored 170 nests for environmental conditions as part of a larger Georgia Department of Natural Resources monitoring program. Mothers had been identified using molecular data and classified as either neophytes or remigrants. We identified 34 of the nests as belonging to neophyte Loggerhead mothers, which exhibited a 61% hatching success rate, compared to only 46% success for remigrant mothers (P < 0.01). Further analysis suggested no differences in environmental parameters between neophyte and remigrant nests. Thus, while it is possible that different-aged mothers make different nesting-site choices that could affect the nest environment, it is likely that Loggerhead reproductive biology, such as maternal investment, may change over time. More data are required to fully investigate maternal effects on hatching success and to elucidate the mechanisms, both within this species and across multiple species of sea turtles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Published
2022
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2. Environmental factors affecting hatch success in the loggerheadsSea turtle (Caretta caretta)

Author

Whitesell, Mattie J. and Whitesell, Mattie J.

Subjects
Loggerhead turtle Nests Georgia Ossabaw Island., Wildlife relocation Georgia., Nature conservation., Sea turtles Georgia., Nature Conservation., Tortues marines Géorgie (État), Caouanne Nids Géorgie (État) Ossabaw, Île., Faune Délocalisation Géorgie (État), Loggerhead turtle Nests, Nature conservation, Sea turtles, Wildlife relocation, Georgia, Georgia Ossabaw Island
Abstract

Author's abstract: The loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta) is a species federally listed as "threatened" whose global populations are declining. Georgia Department of Natural Resources conservation protocols for this species require the daily monitoring of nesting activity and permit physical relocation of nests which are at risk of being eroded or flooded by storms and high tides in order to increase hatch success--the proportion of hatched to unhatched eggs. Relocated nests are moved to an area with higher elevation in order to avoid flooding, but other variables such as increased temperature and decreased moisture are introduced when relocating. For years temperature and moisture have been regarded as the most important factors that contribute to hatch success but these variables are not always directly considered when relocating nests. It is likely that other environmental variables have an effect on hatch success and influence temperature and moisture. The hypothesis that a combination of geological and biological factors better predicts hatch success compared to temperature and/or moisture alone was tested. Secondly the environmental variables which influence temperature, moisture, and likelihood of tidal washover were also examined to evaluate their impact on hatch success. Loggerhead nests on Ossabaw Island, Georgia were monitored throughout incubation; upon incubation completion, hatch success was calculated. For all nests, temperature, moisture, vegetation cover and composition, elevation, dune morphology, and tidal washovers were recorded. These variables were analyzed to assess their individual and combined influences on nest conditions and ultimately on hatch success. In addition to number of washover events, temperature, and moisture, nest vegetation and elevation were important predictors of hatch success in loggerhead sea turtle nests and should be considered when nest relocation is required

Published
2018

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