Turtle Awareness and Protection Studies (TAPS)

2018 Research Update

June - September

Roatan
In-water photos of hawksbill turtles can be used to identify individual turtles through facial recongition.		When hawksbill turtles begin to feed on sponge, Geodia neptuni, french anglefish are typically never far behind.
ProTECTOR Inc. volunteer, Bev Hall, helps the team search for green and hawksbill turtles.		ProTECTOR Inc. volunteer, Zach Hall, scouting for turtles.
ProTECTOR Inc. volunteers, Greg Phillips and Charles Handley, participating in the search for sea turtles.		During hawksbill feeding events, anglefish are typically found close by.
A hawksbill turtle, eretmochelys imbricata, rests in the coral reef.		ProTECTOR Inc. volunteers enjoy a close up encounter with a recently capture hawksbill.
Ashley Morrow, a ProTECTOR Inc. intern, joins the group on an in-water survey.		Hawksbill observed in the Sandy Bay West End Marine Reserve are classified as spongivores.
Anna Rumbelow (a Dive Master at our New Partner dive shop, Splash Inn) and Stephen Dunbar pose with a hawksbill sea turtle.		Ashley spent the summer observing fish interactions with foraging hawksbill.
ProTECTOR Inc. volunteer, John Bonardelli, prior to beginning an in-water turtle survey.		Several juvenile hawksbill sea turtles are found within the Sandy Bay West End Marine Reserve in Roatan, Honduras.
A green turtle, Chelonia mydas, rests on the reef.		Graduate student, Marsha Wright, prepares to capture a resting green turtle.
Dr. Dunbar prepares to hand-capture a resting green turtle.
ProTECTOR Inc. volunteer, Charles, is gets a closer look a large hawksbill with it's flipper tag.		Facial scute patterns of the left and right side of the head help us identify individual sea turtles.
Splash Inn Dive Master, Anna Rumbelow, joins the team for an in-water turtle survey.		Dr. Dunbar and his graduate student, Marsha Wright, collect morphometrics and biological samples from a juvenile hawksbill.
Dive enthusiast, Stephanie Stone, poses with one of the hawksbill turtles she adopted.		A Splash Inn guest who was very interested in sea turtle research.
Scute patterns of the head can be used to identify individual hawksbills.		The intricate pattern of a hawksbill's shell has made it a target for international trade.
Graduate student, Marsha Wright, and ProTECTOR Inc. intern, Lindsay Marston, collecting a blood sample from a juvnile hawksbill.		Joe Matute, ProTECTOR Inc. boat captain, releases a juvenile hawksbill back into the ocean.
ProTECTOR Inc. inter, Lindsay Marston, enjoys a safety stop.		Graduate student, Marsha Wright, collects morphological measurements of a hawksbill turtle.
ProTECTOR Inc. intern, Dustin Geinger, calms a recently captured hawksbill sea turtle.
		Iconel tags with unique numerical sequences can be used to visually identify individual turtles.
Dr. Dunbar and his graduate student, Marsha Wright, collect blood samples from a juvenile hawksbill.
Utila
Pumpkin Hill Beach, the main site for the Utila's nesting hawksbills.		A more distant view of the small and heavily vegetated Pumpkin Hill Beach.
Newly hatched baby hawksbills emerge from the nest and make their way to the water.		A successful hatchling has many hardhsips to face after emerging from the nest.
Guanaja
John Bonardelli, Emily Hyatt, and RObert Gamariello are ready to fly out to Guanaja.		Steve, Emily, and Robert managed to squeeze themselves and the gear into the small plane. Guanaja bound!
At the Bonacca Cay library, Steve gave a talk highlighting the importance of protecting the local sea turtles.		There are many impassioned and individuals on Guanaja who made for an enthusiastic audience.
Even after hatchlings have emerged, an excavated nest can yield important information.		Cindy Gerke has built a chambered structure to facilitate the head starting of eight baby hawksbills.
Wilmont Bay is a beautiful place, and we are grateful to Cindy Gerke for sharing her home and contributing greatly to the team.		Anolis allisoni, commonly known as the blue-headed anole, displaying its beautiful pink dewlap.
Steve demonstrated proper measuring and handling procedures as a part of community outreach, using a carbdoard turtle stand-in.		The training session was well-received and very informative!
Graham's Place has a small captive population of turtles, and kindly allowed us to use them for demonstration.		One of Graham's turtles cooperated in the training of obtaining proper, standardized measurements of turtle size.
Steve and Cindy Gerke, our gracious host and dedicated turtle conservationist.		Sue Hendrickson and John Bonardelli discuss the potential for loacting and protecting the island's turtles.