Northeast Coast (SCDNR)

Project Type(s):capture

Site Name:Northeast Coast (SCDNR)

Site Reference Number:40

Region(s):Northeast, Northeast, Northeast

Counties:Duval, Nassau, St. Johns

Approximate Latitude: 30.42 Approximate Longitude: -81.35

Principal Investigator(s):Arendt, Michael; Maier, Phillip; Owens, David; Segars, Al; Whitaker, David

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

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

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

Project Status: Active

Start Date: 7/2000

End Date: n/a

General Method(s) Used:trawl

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

Bottom Type(s):pelagic, sand

Water Type Zone: neritic-pelagic Water Type Environment: marine

Min. Depth (m): 0 Max. Depth (m): 18

Mean Depth (m): 11.5

Species	No. of Captures	No. of Sightings	Min Size* (cm)	Max Size* (cm)	Mean Size* (cm)	FP Observed	Life Stages**	Comments
Green Turtle (Cm)	1	n/a	27.6	0.0	27.6	No	n/r
Loggerhead (Cc)	251	n/a	51.2	85.9	66.6	No	n/r
Kemp's Ridley (Lk)	16	n/a	44.1	58.9	51.0	No	n/r
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.

blood chemistry

This project was designed to provide a standardized measure of relative abundance of sea turtles along the southeastern coast of the United States from Winyah Bay, SC, to St. Augustine, FL. Researchers employed fisheries-independent trawl sampling to capture turtles. Loggerheads were the primary sea turtle species captured. Catch per unit effort of loggerheads was higher in this study than it was in the 1970s and 1980s. Loggerhead catch rates were also significantly higher than those reported by commercial shrimp trawlers in the same area. Catch rates ranged from 0.48 to 0.59 loggerheads per trawl-net-hour. The researchers believe that their higher CPUE values reflect an increase in the juvenile loggerhead population since the 1980s, but they also noted a trend of reduced catch rates of smaller loggerheads over the first four years of the study. Loggerhead densities increased at lower latitudes. Juvenile loggerheads tended to congregate near inlets, while adults were more evenly distributed. Juveniles also showed stronger site fidelity than adults, as indicated by interannual recaptures.

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