Cape Canaveral (SCDNR)

General Information

Project Type(s):capture

Site Name:Cape Canaveral (SCDNR)

Site Reference Number:34

Region(s):Southeast

Counties:Brevard

Approximate Latitude: 28.39 Approximate Longitude: -80.54

View ArcGIS map of study area

Principal Investigator(s):Arendt, Michael; Owens, David; Rostal, David; Segars, Al

Point(s) of Contact:Arendt, Michael - Phone Number: (843) 953-9097, Email: arendtm@dnr.sc.gov

Organizations Involved:College of Charleston, Georgia Southern University, South Carolina Department of Natural Resources

Organization Type(s):university, university, state agency

Project Status: Inactive

Start Date: 4/2006

End Date: 12/2007

Equipment and Methods

General Method(s) Used:trawl

Sampling and Effort

	Visual	Capture
Sampling regime:	annually	annually
Measure of effort:	unknown	cap/area

Bottom Type(s):channel

Water Type Zone: neritic Water Type Environment: marine

Min. Depth (m): 10.2 Max. Depth (m): 10.2

Mean Depth (m): 10.2

Captures and Sightings Information

Species	No. of Captures	No. of Sightings	Min Size* (cm)	Max Size* (cm)	Mean Size* (cm)	FP Observed	Life Stages**
Green Turtle (Cm)	0	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a
Loggerhead (Cc)	156	n/a	53.7	107.0	81.9	No	n/r
Kemp's Ridley (Lk)	0	n/a	0.0	0.0	0.0	n/a	n/a
Hawksbill (Ei)	0	n/a	0.0	0.0	0.0	n/a	n/a
Leatherback (Dc)	0	n/a	0.0	0.0	0.0	n/a	n/a

*All size measurements are SSCL unless otherwise indicated
** For Cm, Cc, Lk, & Ei: O - Oceanic-stage juvenile; N - Neritic-stage juvenile; S - Subadult; A - Adult. For Dc: I - Immature; A - Adult. n/a = not applicable; n/r = not reported.

This report adheres to the following size ranges for life stage classification for these species:

	Green turtle	Loggerhead	Kemp's ridley	Hawksbill
Oceanic-stage juvenile	< 25 cm SCL	< 30 cm SCL	< 25 cm SCL	< 25 cm SCL
Neritic-stage juvenile	25-69 cm SCL	30-69 cm SCL	25-39 cm SCL	25-64 cm SCL
Subadult	70-84 cm SCL	70-79 cm SCL	40-59 cm SCL	65-74 cm SCL
Adult	≥ 85 cm SCL	≥ 80 cm SCL	≥ 60 cm SCL	≥ 75 cm SCL

	Leatherback
Immature	< 135 cm OCL
Adult	≥ 135 cm OCL

Other Information Collected

blood chemistry

diving behavior

mercury

organoflourines

satellite tracking

Project Summary

Loggerheads were targeted in the Cape Canaveral Shipping Channel with the primary goal of outfitting the animals with satellite transmitters to monitor their migrations. Nine adult males were tagged in 2006, four of which appeared to remain as residents in the area. Four adult males migrated north to South Carolina, Maryland, and New Jersey and eventually returned southward in September. The ninth transmitter failed after only 10 days. Laparoscopy and ultrasounds were performed on adult male loggerheads to determine reproductive activity. Researchers compared these methods to hormone sampling and measures of plastron softness as less invasive ways to assess reproductive activity.

Documents

File Name	Type	Description
Arendt_etal_2012a.pdf	Journal Article
Arendt_etal_2012b.pdf	Journal Article
Arendt_etal_2012c.pdf	Journal Article
Arendt_etal_2012d.pdf	Journal Article

* This document is available from FWC by request. Email SeaTurtleData@MyFWC.com if you would like a copy. Please include both the project name and file name in your email.
** This document has been provided to FWC but is unavailable for download. Please contact the project PI if you would like a copy.

Literature/Reports Produced

Arendt, M., A. Segars, J. Byrd, J.D. Whitaker, D. Owens, G. Blanvillan. 2007. Examination of local movement and migratory behavior of sea turtles during spring and summer along the Atlantic Coast off the Southeastern United States. Annl. Rpt. NMFS.

Arendt, M., A. Segars, J. Byrd, J. Boynton, D. Whitaker, L. Parker, D. Owens, G. Blanvillain, J. Quattro, M. Roberts. 2012a. Distributional patterns of adult male loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) in the vicinity of Cape Canaveral, Florida, USA during and after a major annual breeding aggregation. Mar. Biol. 159:101–112.

Arendt, M., A. Segars, J. Byrd, J. Boynton, J. Schwenter, J. Whitaker, L. Parker. 2012b. Migration, distribution, and diving behavior of adult male loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) following dispersal from a major breeding aggregation in the Western North Atlantic. Mar. Biol. 159:113–125.

Arendt, M., A. Segars, J. Byrd, J. Boynton, D. Whitaker, L. Parker, D. Owens, G. Blanvillain, J. Quattro, M. Roberts. 2012c. Seasonal distribution patterns of juvenile loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) following capture from a shipping channel in the Northwest Atlantic Ocean. Mar. Biol. 159:127–139.

Arendt, M., J. Schwenter, J. Boynton, A. Segars, J. Byrd, D. Whitaker, L. Parker. 2012d. Temporal trends (2000–2011) and influences on fishery-independent catch rates for loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) at an important coastal foraging region in the southeastern United States. Fish. Bull. 110:470–483.