Results from the 2018 and 2019 Tagging Trips
More detailed result from 2019 (Pua Lilia) Iridium Tag
Poster Paper, 2018 (Teslaba, Lucy, Ethana)
January 27, 2020
On January 7th, 8th and 12th, our team from Hawaii Preparatory Academy and from the Vanuatu Cultural Centre/National Museum, Republic of Vanuatu traveled to Moso Island, Republic of Vanuatu to conduct our third effort to capture and satellite tag post-nesting hawksbill turtles (Eretmochelys imbricata).
During our three nights on the nesting beaches, we were able to locate and tag 3 turtles (Table 1).
Two of the Turtles were outfitted with Telonics TGW-4*7* Iridium GPS tags and one was outfitted with a Telonics TAM 2640 ARGOS tag.
NOTE: Tissue samples for DNA analysis have been taken from 4 of the 7 satellite tagged adult turtles and from 20+ juvenile hawksbill turtles in the last two years of the project
Our Turtles now have names:
713459 is named "Launmakala"
713458 is named "Tassiriki"
164950 is named "Pansiko"
Currently, All three hawksbill turtles are transmitting successfully. Launmakala (713459) has traveled southwest from Moso Island and is currently passing through the Loyalty islands (Figure 1). Tassiriki (713458) is still in the area of the the nesting beaches and will most likely nest again (Figure 2). Pansiko (164950) moved out from Moso Island shortly after her capture and is currently moving west-southwest of Moso Island, passing across the north end of the New Caledonia archipelago (Figure 3).
Table 1. Summary of hawksbill nesting turtles
satellite tagged on Moso Island between January 7 and January 12, 2020.
SAT TAG #
Name
|
Date Captured
|
Date Released
|
Location of
Release
|
Curved
Carapace Length and Width (cm)
|
Flipper Tags
LFF = left
front flipper
RFF = right
front flipper
|
Iridium 713459
Launmakala |
Jan. 7, 2020
|
Jan. 7, 2020
|
17.522134 S
168.240484 E
|
CCL=87
CCW=77.0
|
Old Tags:
LFF=R49320
RFF=R49321
|
Iridium
713458
Tassiriki |
Jan. 8, 2020
|
Jan. 9, 2020
|
17.522101 S
168.239628
|
CCL=94.5
CCW=85.5
|
Old Tags:
LFF=R40015
RFF=R40016
|
TAM 2640 164950
Pansiko
|
Jan. 12, 2020
|
Jan. 12, 2020
|
17.520570 S
168.258996 E
|
CCL=100.0
CCW=95.0
|
New Tags:
LFF=R40763
RFF=R40764
|
Below are a couple of videos of the travels of two of our tagged turtles as of 1/30/2020
Figure 3. Tassiriki's (713458) track from 2/8/20 to 2/10/20, she appears to be through nesting and has begun here migration back to her forage grounds
Satellite View
Map View
Figure 4. Pansiko (713459) has now transited the northern reach of the New Caledonia Archipelago
and is progressing into the Coral Sea. I would say, based on two other tracks, that she is bound for
the Great Barrier Reef, Australia. We shall see!
