Turtles encountered to date:
Leatherback = 81
Green = 22
Hawksbill = 3

Greetings from Costa Rica!

If you have read the first ‘Notes from the Field’, you will be aware that the 2008 Leatherback Program is well under way; in fact the nesting season is going by so quickly that the research group has under two weeks left at the station. They have worked extremely hard during the last three months, walking many miles on the beach throughout the day and night, counting tracks and tagging nesting turtles. In the last week the first of the leatherback nests that they marked at the start of the season, and have monitored each day during its incubation period, hatched. Everyone was thrilled to get the opportunity to see a tiny leatherback hatchling when they went to excavate the nest a couple of days after they saw evidence of hatching. It’s always rewarding to be able to see the complete cycle of events on the nesting beach, from the moment the adult female lays her eggs in the sand, to when the tiny tracks leading from the nest signal the departure of a new generation of turtles to the sea. Unfortunately, turtle nests in Tortuguero face a myriad of threats; some are natural, such as crabs or flooding from the sea, but others are artificial, such as illegal poaching or predation from feral dogs.

The CCC continues to work in conjunction with Tortuguero National Park staff to try and provide information about illegal poaching levels, so that they can effectively patrol the beach and enforce the strict laws protecting sea turtles in Costa Rica. We are also dedicated to ensuring that all non-natural threats to the turtles nesting in Tortuguero are reduced; they have plenty of natural enemies to deal with, without the added pressures of the artificial ones. One way in which we are striving to achieve this goal is by helping to reduce the problem of feral dogs on the beach in Tortuguero. Packs of dogs are regularly seen by the research teams out on the beach close to the village during the day, and they have even been spotted during night patrols too. In 2007, 119 sea turtle nests were recorded as predated by dogs during the Green Turtle Program, but this is not a problem that is confined to this turtle species; already in 2008 there have been reports of dogs predating leatherback nests.

The particular problem with dog predation is that they typically disturb the nests when the hatchlings have emerged from their eggs but are still within the egg chamber. Dogs will dig down and find the hatchlings, and either kill them or eat the eggs. Even those hatchlings that do not die are often injured, or they fall victim to other predators, such as crabs or ants.

In recent years there has been a noticeable, and disturbing, increase in the number of dogs in the village of Tortuguero; many of whom do not have an owner, and so who are left to fend for themselves. Obviously turtle eggs and hatchlings are an easy meal for a dog; and once they learn how to get at them, then they will readily destroy other nests when they are hungry in the future.

Towards the end of the 2007 green turtle nesting season some of the local tour guides in Tortuguero started to express their concern over the negative effects that the dogs were having out on the nesting beach; the subject was raised in a letter that they presented to the Ministry of Environment and Energy staff responsible for protection in Tortuguero National Park, requesting their assistance to reduce the problem of dog predation of nests. In response to this issue the National Park, together with CCC, another non-governmental organization, ProParques, and concerned members of the community formed a committee to organize a veterinary clinic for the area. Over the next few months staff this committee approached several different animal welfare organizations, the National University veterinary school, and a private vet from the Caribbean region, for their support in finding a solution to this problem; with their help it was decided to conduct a spay/neuter clinic in the area, to tackle the growing population of stray dogs in the community. Their experiences suggested that in addition to the clinic it would be of great benefit to also run a simultaneous educational campaign, to raise local awareness about caring for their pets. Medical pharmaceutical companies were also approached for sponsorship of the project through the donation of veterinary supplies necessary for the operations and after-care medication of the animals.

In the weeks leading up to the first of the spay/neuter clinics in 2008, staff from Tortuguero National Park, ProParques and the Costa Rican Humane Association for the Protection of Animals (AHPPA in Spanish), visited the schools and high schools in the communities of Tortuguero and San Francisco; giving talks about how to care for their dogs and cats, and telling them the health and social benefits of having their animals spayed/neutered. The focus of the clinic was on the damage that the over-population of dogs was causing to the local wildlife, primarily the turtles. They also conducted interviews to find out an estimate of the number of pets in the village, and the opinion of the community towards veterinary care. The results of these interviews were quite worrying, for they revealed that there are almost 200 pets (dogs and cats) in Tortuguero, and that hardly any had visited a veterinarian.

Armed with that information, and prepared for a busy schedule, on the weekend of the 28 – 30 March, 2008, the first veterinary clinic was realized; veterinarians from AHPPA, the National University Veterinary School and Dr Hernán Barrantes (from the local area) arrived in Tortuguero and began the first of many operations that would take place over the next couple of days. That afternoon several dogs were spayed/neutered at the temporary clinic that was set up at a central location in the middle of the village. News of the vets arrived quickly spread, and they were soon surrounded by a group of local school children very keen to see what was happening, having recently learned about the vet clinic in the presentations given in school the week before.

The following morning the vets started early to try and beat the heat, and worked tirelessly (in both villages) throughout the day. There was soon a long line of dogs, and cats, waiting patiently in the shade for the next available vet. While most were brought in by their owners, the local children were also able to bring along some of the stray dogs too. Each animal was spayed/neutered and treated for external and internal parasites; they were also given antibiotics to prevent post-operation infection. Each owner was also given a list of detailed aftercare instructions when their animal was ready to go home. The lack of cars in the village meant that there were some ingenious methods of transporting the still sleepy animals back to their house; some were carried, some went on the back of an ATV and many were ferried home in style in a fleet of wheelbarrows lined with cardboard! CCC staff and volunteers were pressed into action to assist with the transportation of animals, and to help coordinate the arrival and processing of the animals for the vets.

At the end of the weekend all those involved agreed that it had been a huge success; 93 dogs and cats had been spayed/neutered and deparisatized between the two villages (almost half of those that were recorded during the surveys). Everyone was very impressed with the level of support shown by the communities, and as the vets were leaving people were already starting to ask when they would be returning. While this will not be an instant fix to the problem of predation of turtle nests, the idea is to repeat the clinics at least twice a year, so that the dog population cannot spiral out of control. In addition, the education component of the programme will improve the general health of the pets in the village, and raise awareness of the huge responsibility that owning a pet entails.

The next clinic has been planned for the end of June, and in the next couple of weeks CCC volunteers will assist in the publicity of this event, to try and continue with the success of the first. One of the programme sponsors, the pharmaceutical company FaryVet, has already offered to donate vaccinations for this next clinic, and several generous private donations have also been received. Hopefully with this financial assistance and the support of the community for the programme it can continue into the foreseeable future. And such a project brings only benefits; there will be a reduction in the number of dogs (and cats) in the village, and they will be vaccinated and well cared for, and so less likely to be out on the beach depredating endangered turtle nests. CCC will continue to be involved in this programme, and will also actively monitor the levels of nest predation in an effort to validate its success.

Hasta luego!

Emma Harrison
CCC Scientific Director
Costa Rica

Greetings from Tortuguero, Costa Rica!

This is the first of the “Notes from the Field” for 2008; from now on we will hopefully provide at least a monthly summary of all the exciting events taking place at our field station in Tortuguero, Costa Rica.

Turtles Tagged During the Leatherback Turtle Season:
LEATHERBACK = 42 (21 nests marked)
GREEN = 12
HAWKSBILL = 0

So much has happened since the start of the 2008 Leatherback Program on 1 March, it's been a busy couple of months for the Field Coordinators (FCs), Xavier Debade and Dagnia Nolasco, and the group of eight Research Assistants (RAs). We are very lucky because Xavier and Dagnia have returned for another year to supervise the RAs, run the monitoring program and coordinate community activities in the villages of Tortuguero and San Francisco.

Following their arrival the RAs received an intensive training program; they spent two weeks learning about turtle biology, species identification, the role of the CCC in Tortuguero and the details of the monitoring protocol they will be using during their time with CCC. During the day there were theoretical sessions at the station, and then practical, hands-on training out on the beach at night.

This photo shows FC Xavier Debade instructing RA Isabel Díaz, from Spain, on the correct way to find a marked nest; the 'nest' in question was actually a coconut buried by her colleagues several days before as part of the practical session on how to mark nests out on the beach at night!

As well as learning about turtle biology and research methods, the RAs also helped to set up the beach for the season. They spent many hot and sweaty hours placing and painting mile marker posts at 4/8 mile intervals along the entire 22 miles of beach they will survey during the Leatherback Program. It wasn't all hard work though; the RAs also got to go out with a local guide on a canal tour one morning. They learned about the local flora and fauna of the region, and were lucky enough to see firsthand some of the amazing species found in the park. To appreciate the importance of the National Park in helping to conserve endangered species, park rangers gave a talk about the creation of Tortuguero National Park, and detailed the laws relating to turtle conservation in Costa Rica. A member of one of the founding families of Tortuguero also spoke to the group about the history and development of the community; they had a unique opportunity to question him about the changes he has witnessed over the years, and to hear his opinion on the growth and future of his village. As you can see, the RAs received a very comprehensive orientation, which didn't just focus on turtles and the beach, but hopefully also gave them a greater understanding of the link between turtles, the National Park, tourism and the community of Tortuguero.

Obviously the reason that everyone is in Tortuguero is to collect information about the sea turtles that come ashore every year to lay their eggs. Right now it is the turn of the leatherbacks, the biggest of the sea turtle species; they began arriving in late February, and will carry on nesting until June. The researchers were keen to encounter their first leatherback after all their training, to put what they had learned to the test. However, the first few night patrols at the start of the season were rather disappointing as they didn't see any females. Their track surveys showed that leatherbacks were coming ashore and nesting, but down in the middle of the beach, miles beyond the limit of the night patrols. It took the arrival of the first volunteer participants on 16 March to entice the leatherbacks ashore. Elizabeth and Robert were lucky enough to see several females during their stay at the station, and even got to count the eggs for one female while she was laying; that nest will be due to hatch in the next couple of months.

Since then, 42 leatherback encounters have been reported during nightly patrols; of these 15 are new recruits, receiving tags for the first time this year and 18 had tags when seen (including turtles originally tagged in Pacuare and Gandoca; nesting beaches further south from Tortuguero on the Caribbean coast). Nine of these females we have been fortunate enough to see more than once during the last 2 months; it's always nice to follow the nesting schedule of individuals, and see them repeatedly over the course of a nesting season. In the last couple of weeks we have also seen more green turtle nesting activity; 12 females have been seen to date. Typically this species nests later in the year in Tortuguero (from June – November); however, every year we find several early nesters during the leatherback season. For the RAs it is a fantastic experience to get an opportunity to work with two of the seven species of turtle that exist in the world, and as May approaches we are all eagerly awaiting the arrival of the first hawksbills at the beach. The research team has also been lucky enough to mark 21 leatherback nests; these are monitored each morning for signs of disturbance, predation or erosion. When the hatchlings have left the nest we inventory the contents of the egg chamber to estimate the hatching success. The first of these marked nests is due to hatch in the next couple of weeks; I'll be sure to let you know how many hatchlings made it safely to the sea.

Keep reading the 'Notes from the Field' as the season progresses to learn more about life at the station, exciting turtle encounters on the beach, and special community events in Tortuguero.

And remember, if you want to know more about how you can become part of the research team, all the necessary information can be found in the “Participate in Research” section of the CCC website.

I look forward to welcoming you to Tortuguero in the future!

Hasta luego!
Emma Harrison
CCC Scientific Director

Here you can follow the excitement of a research field season as CCC's Field Coordinator sends regular updates from Tortuguero, Costa Rica. Research participants have already begun to experience the incredible ritual of a female sea turtle coming ashore to nest. How about you? Volunteer Research Participants are arriving in Tortuguero each week ready to join in the field research! CCC invites you to join the fun and adventure during our Research Programs and make a difference by helping researchers with hands-on conservation work as a sea turtle research participant or a neotropical bird research participant. No experience needed, you will receive training in the field!

While the number of tourists visiting Tortuguero is decreasing, the green sea turtles keep coming in large quantities to nest along the shore of Tortuguero beach. Indeed, August and September are the two most important months in terms of nesting activity for this species.

Our new Research Assistants (RAs) and the Field Coordinators (FCs) still have lots of work ahead! This is the reason why the team of RAs has changed since the beginning of September. The last group worked very hard and it was time for them to rest. We wish the new group good luck and a great working experience.

During those months, the RAs have worked not only on the beach, but also in the visitor center and helping with selling the stickers for the spotter program. They have also prepared different activities for the elementary school of San Francisco, Tortuguero and high school of Tortuguero.

All that work is being carried out only for the sake of sea turtles and personal satisfaction. It’s important to remind that the spotter program is still running, minimizing the impacts of tourism on the sea turtle nesting activity. We already know that it is better for the sea turtles, but also more tourists (therefore (therefore more guides) can go out at night to enjoy turtle watching...that’s why we all have to promote this program!

Early results of the 2007 green turtle program

The leatherback monitoring program has come to an end, here is the last update for this season. Our Research Assistants (Ras) and our Field Coordinators (FCs) have accomplished a very hard work those last 3 months. We did 974.5 hours of night patrols, which does not include the hours spent revising the nests every morning and the track surveys regularly realised along the 22 miles long beach. In two occasions, we carried out environmental education with the school kids, where we talked about waste, recycling, sea turtles biology using a story and some games to discuss the different threats that these animals are facing. We thank our volunteers, everybody from Tortuguero who collaborated with us, the guides who let us do our work.

In a way, we know that we all work for the same cause, which is to ensure a good future for sea turtles, via a sustainable tourism or conservation projects like this one.

Although bad news occur, like the one from the last 30th of May, where a leatherback was found cruelly killed on the beach, we believe and trust that more people take conscience of how important these animals are , not only for the marine ecosystem but also for the local economy of Tortuguero.

We know that we have to take care of this natural resource to keep growing as a touristic village.

Full Summary of 2007 Leatherback Field Season