FRETEYi 



Variability of the nesting interval among 

 individuals may affect estimates of annual nesting 

 levels. Firm statements about the size or 

 stability of the nesting population are 

 complicated by shifts in selected nesting beaches. 

 Cooperative tagging programs and exchange of data 

 should be continued. 



WITHAM; 



BJORNDAL : 



LIMPUS ; 



The Atlantic population was probably once a single 

 population that has been broken up into discrete 

 units by the impact of human activities. 

 Historically scatophagy may have possibly 

 increased feeding efficiency. The inability to 

 find juvenile C. mydas may be due to pollution by 

 the oil industry, especially tar ball ingestion. 



The grave threats of pollution (including 

 petroleum products) , especially at convergence 

 zones, were emphasized. 



Fluctuations in Caribbean nesting populations are 

 similar to fluctuations seen in the Pacific. 

 Intensive tagging since 1974 at Heron Island has 

 shown large variations in annual nesting 

 populations. All of the nesting populations along 

 the Great Barrier Reef appear to be similarly 

 fluctuating. There is no indication that changes 

 in take cause or explain changes in nesting 

 population levels. Analyses have shown a strong 

 correlation between the El Nino southern 

 oscillation index and turtle nest densities with a 

 two year lag time. The number of adult females is 

 constant from year to year on the foraging 

 grounds, but the percentage of females that 

 prepare to breed in any year fluctuates. Large 

 fluctuations in nesting densities may be primarily 

 a result of environmental influences on the 

 foraging ground and not an immediate indication of 

 changes in the total population size. Whether the 

 Great Barrier Reef population is increasing, 

 decreasing or stable cannot be answered after 12 

 years of intense data collection. This emphasizes 

 the need for long term data to assess true 

 population trends. 



96 



