Meeting Abstract
The first 24 hours after hatching are incredibly dangerous and important for sea turtle survival. In Florida, between the months of June and October, loggerhead (Caretta caretta) and green (Chelonia mydas) sea turtle hatchlings emerge at night from their nests on ocean beaches. From the nest they locate the sea by orienting away from the dark, dune vegetation and crawling toward the brighter, lower oceanic horizon. However, hatchlings can be misoriented landward by strong, localized artificial sources of light or disoriented by diffuse skyglow from urban areas causing them to wander the beach without direction. Even in cases where mis-/disoriented animals reach the ocean, the increased distances hatchlings crawl to reach the ocean consumes valuable energy and the exhausted animals are less likely to survive. This study presents laboratory simulations of extended crawl distances to investigate the energy cost to sea turtle hatchlings incurred during these misorientation and disorientation events. Oxygen consumption, blood glucose levels, and lactic acid concentrations are measured as well as crawl behavior and swim performance following crawl trials. Results will determine if the energy consumed by misorientation and disorientation events affects hatchling ability to swim offshore. This research will provide quantitative physiological data to managers to determine the best practices for sea turtle conservation and add to the current biological knowledge of these animals.
