Barbuda Ocean Club, a private resort and community on Barbuda in the West Indies, has established the island’s first permanent sea turtle monitoring program. The program released its 2019 annual report this week.
Led by acclaimed environmental scientist and Barbuda Ocean Club’s chief environmental consultant Dr. Deborah Brosnan, the monitoring program was created to help recover and protect endangered sea-turtles. Its goal is to use the best-available science to establish a robust, long-term monitoring protocol on Barbuda to enhance understanding, protection, and conservation of critical habitat.
The program has established a community-based sea turtle patrol team from among local Barbuda citizens. The team is trained in scientific monitoring methods, including GPS referencing techniques, GIS mapping, international standards for tagging and tracking turtles, and estimating clutch sizes and relocating at-risk nests.
Better habitat leads to more nesting
In an annual report just published, the team recorded 73 nesting events. Hawksbill turtles, the most common nesting species laid an average of 127 eggs per nest. Some 111 tiny hatchlings emerged from each nest and safely reached the ocean- indicating high nesting success. Though the program is in its infancy, the team recorded more sea turtle nests in 2020 compared to 2019. They believe this increase was partly due Barbuda Ocean Club removing old concrete walls from the beach areas of Coco Point, and restoring the native vegetation, making the area more conducive to turtle nesting. This year also was the first time that leatherbacks nested in the monitored sites.
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