See the astonishing journey of North Atlantic green sea turtles, from the shores of Florida to their Sargasso Sea nursery.
New research from Royal Society Publishing has revealed a little more about the mysterious life of green sea turtles.
Sea turtles are known for their tumultuous and fascinating life cycles. With only an estimated 1 in 1,000 surviving to adulthood, hatchlings must fight against the odds from day one.
It is known that North Atlantic green turtles return to coastal waters once they reach a mature size. However, their journey before this return is largely unknown.
This is due to the difficulty of “tracking small, fast-growing animals across long distances and time periods within marine habitats.”
Historically, it was believed that turtles move “passively within ocean currents“, alternating between swimming, and floating with the water’s movement. Much of this information, however, was collected only from “opportunistic offshore sightings“.
Kate Mansfield recently led a team of researchers to follow the movement of green turtles via tracking devices. The researchers developed methods to attach solar-powered transmitters to the shells of turtles using an adhesive. Finding an adhesive that worked proved a challenge to the research team.
Due to the rapid growth of the turtles, most glues would shed from the turtle’s shells as they grow. Nevertheless, a glue was found that would last three months— just enough for the turtles to embark on their journey and return to the shore.
A total of 21 turtles were released off the shore of their natal beaches in Florida. The tracking devices showed the turtles’ collective movement through the Gulf Stream and North Atlantic Subtropical Gyre currents to the Sargasso Sea.
The Sargasso Sea is a large region of the Atlantic Ocean beside Bermuda. It provides a plentiful habitat for the turtles. Namely, the Sargassum algae mats cover the Sargasso Sea supply turtles with a rich food source, predator protection and warm temperatures.
Mansfield describes the habitat as a “sea-turtle nursery“. The turtles can remain at the sea surface, and capitalise on the direct sunlight to encourage healthy growth and survival.
Ever wonder where baby green turtles go during their “lost years” in the open ocean? In the North Atlantic, the Sargasso Sea is emerging as an important sea turtle nursery! Check out our new paper (Open Access):https://t.co/e9eZl2v30l
📸: K Mansfield/G Stahelin pic.twitter.com/rD5yJ1cVV4
— Dr. Kate Mansfield 😷 (@UCFTurtleLab) May 5, 2021
The research comes at an important time. The ongoing disaster of oceanic pollution threatens the resilient life cycle of turtles. A recent study has estimated that approximately 80% of North Atlantic green turtles ingest microplastics.
Microplastics’ incredible capacity to disperse across the ocean makes them a serious environmental threat that severely harms marine ecosystems. Hopefully, Mansfield research will raise awareness of the beautiful life of green turtles and the necessity of protecting them.
Here are some more baby turtle tracks from the 2nd year of our tracking study (2013).
These “lost years” green turtles were all released in the Gulf Stream. Just like some of the little loggerheads we tracked, many of our turtles went to the Sargasso Sea!
🎥: J Luo/UM RSMAS pic.twitter.com/25eGXr14Ks
— Dr. Kate Mansfield 😷 (@UCFTurtleLab) May 5, 2021
