Vanuatu STRP - 2024

Link to Introductory Page   11/28/2024 Laura Jim and Marc Rice meet with Luke and Zane to go over the process of attaching a satellite tag.  We attached a mock tag using UV activated polyester resin and fiber glass cloth so that everyone understood what we need to do when we find a nesting hawksbill turtle in Vanuatu.  When we are out in the field attaching a tag it will be night time (typically 1200-0100 h), cold, dark and possible raining so we need to know what we are doing and how to do it while making sure the turtle is OK and the tag is securely attached before we release the turtle - It all requires a strong team effort.  Below are some images taken by Laura during the training. Practicing layering fiberglass cloth with Polyester resin. Fitting the fiberglass cloth to the contours of the tag and the turtle's shell requires a little cutting and fitting expertise. Applying the resin to the cloth requires that all air bubbles are removed and that the cloth is totally impregnate

 11/16/2023 Our home base on Moso Island... Tranquility Resort. Video of our 2023 trip This January, we will make our 4th trip to Vanuatu to continue our hawksbill turtle research.  We have 2 students who will join Laura Jim and Marc Rice to travel to Vanuatu to deploy up to 4 Sea Trk iridium satellite tags on post-nesting hawksbill turtles.  We will be on Moso Island from January 5, 2024 to January 14, 2024. Slide show giving introduction to our co-investigators and Moso Island.   Project Purpose There are several nesting beaches in Vanuatu and the population of nesting turtles has been declining for many years.  The purpose of this project is to identify the internesting behavior,  migratory paths and the home range foraging habitats through satellite tagging of post-nesting hawksbill turtles ( Eretmochelys imbricata ).  This knowledge will help to address population declines that result from human interactions in foreign foraging areas as well as during the nesting season in Vanuatu