Collaborators at the Jekyll Island Authority in Georgia have released the first satellite-tagged green turtle in Georgia waters under the Navy’s “Green and Kemp's Ridley Turtle Tagging for Availability Bias Estimates” Project.
The juvenile green turtle was discovered on Little Cumberland Island and treated at the Georgia Sea Turtle Center (GSTC) on Jekyll Island for a severe shell infection and fibropapillomatosis. Following rehabilitation and being cleared by Georgia Sea Turtle Center veterinary staff, the turtle was fitted with a satellite tag and released from Jekyll Island.
After release, the turtle left Georgia waters and has migrated to South Carolina, near Hilton Head Island, where the tag remains active. This marks the 1st green turtle tagged under this project to be tracked in waters north of Florida, marking an important step towards better sampling this species’ habitat on the east coast.
In addition to the valuable data collected by this animal supporting Navy research goals, these tag data will be used by the Jekyll Island Authority and GASTC to support their own research and assessment goals, and provide an opportunity to learn more about post-rehabilitation, fibropapillomatosis positive turtles.
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