Different growth rates between loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) of Mediterranean and Atlantic origin in the Mediterranean Sea

We estimated for the first time the growth rates of loggerhead sea turtles of Mediterranean and of Atlantic origin found in the Mediterranean Sea, combining both skeletochronological and genetic analyses. Our growth models suggested that the growth rate of loggerhead sea turtles of Mediterranean ori...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Marine Biology
Main Authors: PIOVANO, SUSANNA, GIACOMA, Cristina, Marcel Clusa, Carlos Carreras, Marta Pascual, Luis Cardona
Other Authors: Susanna Piovano, Carlos Carrera, Cristina Giacoma
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: 2011
Subjects:
North Atlantic
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/2318/90263
https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-011-1759-7
Description
Summary:We estimated for the first time the growth rates of loggerhead sea turtles of Mediterranean and of Atlantic origin found in the Mediterranean Sea, combining both skeletochronological and genetic analyses. Our growth models suggested that the growth rate of loggerhead sea turtles of Mediterranean origin was faster than that of their conspecifics with an Atlantic origin exploiting the feeding grounds in the Mediterranean Sea. The age-at-maturity for Mediterranean origin loggerhead sea turtles, estimated using our best fitting model, was 24 years, which suggests that loggerhead sea turtles nesting in the Mediterranean are not only smaller than those nesting in the western North Atlantic, but they are also younger.

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