Author Type

Graduate Student

Date of Award

2018

Document Type

Thesis

Publication Status

Version of Record

Submission Date

October 2026

Thesis/Dissertation Advisor [Chair]

Baldwin, John D.

Abstract

The migratory behavior of North Atlantic leatherback turtles (Dermochelys coriacea) has been documented in the Wider Caribbean, but the migratory movements of leatherbacks nesting in South Florida are relatively understudied. Our knowledge of their migrations is currently limited to ten nesting females tracked from the east coast of Florida that either moved north to the Northern Atlantic or east to the coast of Western Africa. These results bring to light the need for further investigation and larger sample sizes to identify and determine the relative importance of the different foraging areas for the leatherbacks nesting in South Florida. Here, I analyzed stable carbon (δ13C) and stable nitrogen (δ15N) values in whole blood and skin of leatherbacks nesting in South Florida between 2014 and 2017 to estimate the putative foraging origins of these nesters prior to coming to South Florida to nest. This study provides some of the first stable isotope inferences and insights into the variable pre-nesting foraging habitat locations of Florida’s leatherback population.

Extent

49 p.

Comments

Includes bibliography.|Thesis (M.S.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2018.|FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection|Includes bibliography.

Identifier

FA00013014

Format

pdf

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