Grant: 23-022C
Project Title: Equipment to continue a long-term juvenile marine turtle population structure and abundance study.
Project Manager: Kate L. Mansfield, Ph.D.
Organization: University of Central Florida (Research and Educational Institute)
Grant Amount: $5,670.00
Completion Date:
Summary: This project will support the purchase two tangle nets to continue the long-term assessment of juvenile marine turtle population structure and abundance in the central region of the Indian River Lagoon System. For over four decades, the University of Central Florida Marine Turtle Research Group (UCFMTRG) has conducted a long-term, continuous assessment of juvenile marine turtle population structure and abundance at a study site in the central region of the Indian River Lagoon System approximately 3 km south of Sebastian Inlet. The study has documented the species of immature marine turtles utilizing this area as developmental habitat, the structure of these populations, changes in relative abundance over time, and the prevalence of the disease fibropapillomatosis among juvenile and adult foraging turtles along central Florida’s Atlantic coast. Data from this project have provided for numerous graduate and undergraduate research projects, theses, and dissertations. Over the years the incidental capture of sharks and stingrays has taken its toll on these nets, to the point where they can no longer be repaired and the damage to the nets likely affects (reduces) our catch rates, biasing our catch per unit effort data over time. Our current nets are over 10 years old and have experienced degradation due to exposure to sunlight and heavy use. Additionally, the majority of our bullet buoys are original to the project. These buoys are foam and are also heavily degraded. Many buoys have been lost or damaged and need to be replaced. To successfully continue this long-term project, we will require the replacement of our working nets and bullet buoys.
Results: