Since sea turtle sex is determined by sand temperature, there is no better way to figure out if we are getting more males than females or vice versa than by measuring the temperatures at the nesting sites. Canaveral National Seashore is a National Park where sea turtle nesting happens every day/night during nesting season.
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| Canaveral National Seashore |
I am going to measure the temperatures at 6 different locations. The first will be just outside of the park, and the other 5 will be at the each of the 5 sections where there is parking. I will pick a marked nest and dig a hole approximately 80 centimeters (31 inches) deep. This is the
depth at which Green Turtles lay their eggs. Each test hole will be approximately 2 meters (6 feet) North of the original nest.
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| Sea Turtle Nest |
( Did you know that when sea turtles lay their nests in Florida, they are marked and covered to keep predators out. )
I will get some morning temperatures, some afternoon temperatures, and some evening temperatures. I will also speak with the park rangers and see if they have any data that I may use. I would like to compare temperatures over the past 5-10 years. I would use line graphs to show the differences over the years. The more warming that occurs, the more likely it is to have for females being born.
Horrocks, J., & Browne, D. (n.d.). Questions About Sea
Turtle Biology. Retrieved February 22, 2019, from
http://www.barbadosseaturtles.org/pages/faqs/biology.html
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