Multidecadal tag recoveries of loggerhead turtles nesting in Greece reveal their foraging areas in the Mediterranean
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.3989/scimar.05718.120Keywords:
Caretta caretta, mortality, Gulf of Gabes, Adriatic Sea, Tunisian Plateau, Levantine Sea, marine protected areas, Aegean SeaAbstract
Tag recoveries from a more than 40-year tagging programme of loggerhead turtles nesting at the three major nesting areas of Greece (Zakynthos, Kyparissia Bay, Rethymno) revealed their post-nesting whereabouts in the Mediterranean. Most tag recoveries, signalling potential foraging areas, occurred in the Central Mediterranean, with major concentrations in the Adriatic Sea and the Tunisian Plateau (both characterized by shallow waters and rich benthic fauna), whereas fewer recoveries were recorded in the Aegean Sea. While turtles from Zakynthos and Kyparissia Bay shared the Adriatic Sea and the Tunisian Plateau, turtles from Rethymno (Crete) preferred the Aegean Sea and the Levantine Sea. Tag recoveries showed a much wider dispersal of post-nesting turtles than the dispersal recorded from satellite telemetry, highlighting the benefits of long-term tagging programmes. More than 60% of the recovered turtles were reported dead, indicating the substantial threats that reproductively active individuals, the most biologically valuable group in the loggerhead population, face in the Mediterranean Sea.
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