Black Turtle Tracking

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This project aims to research the feeding ecology of endangered sea turtles in a previously little studied part of their range. The black turtle (a subspecies of the green turtle) is endemic to the eastern Pacific Ocean, including Mexican waters. Specifically, the project will study black turtles that feed year-round in Laguna San Ignacio, on the west coast of Baja California Sur, Mexico. SEE Turtles co-founder Dr. Wallace J. Nichols is a participating scientist on this trip. 

Total Expedition Contribution: $2,550 (includes food, lodging, on-site travel, and research costs; does not include airfare).

Conservation Pricing: $1,565 to conservation and local communities (61%) including $125 to SEE Turtles.

2010 Dates:

Nov 25 - Dec 1

Volunteers will assist with the following tasks:

• Turtle capture, morphology and flipper tagging: Volunteers will work with staff to capture turtles using driftnets. Turtles will be brought aboard the research vessel, disentangled from the net, then measured and tagged. Volunteers will assist with landing the animals and holding them still as they’re tagged, and will then help release them back into the water.
• VHF tagging: Turtles will be captured and tagged as described above. Volunteers will assist with gluing the tags to the animals, and then with the deployment, ensuring the lines don’t get tangled as the turtle is released into the water.
• VHF/GPS tracking: Volunteers will work with staff to track tagged turtles from small boats.
• Sonar mapping: This task involves operating a boat at low speed along transect lines while the sonar is deployed over the side.

Click here to see all of EarthWatch's turtle volunteer projects.