Replication Data for: Temperature conditions in artificial sea turtle nests: Towards optimized hatchery management

Data from nest temperature from a hatchery on the Pacific coast of Guatemala. Temperature loggers were buried in 22 nests of Olive Ridley sea turtle (<i>Lepidochelys olivacea</i>) in 2021. The temperature was measured every hour for the whole incubation time.<br><b>Abstract from related publication:</b>Climate change poses a significant threat to species with temperature-dependent sex determination, such as sea turtles. Their conservation often involves relocating nests to hatcheries, which is also crucial on the Pacific coast of Guatemala, where virtually no hatchlings emerge from natural nests. Populations there rely heavily on hatcheries, yet nest temperature monitoring in relation to environmental and management factors is rarely conducted. Research is needed to improve artificial nest management and hatchery design. This study investigated how distance to the hatchery wall, number of eggs, position in the nest, development period, season, and weather conditions influenced temperature variation in Olive Ridley Turtle (Lepidochelys olivacea) nests. We generally found nest temperatures within viable ranges and near the pivotal temperature for Olive Ridleys. The pivotal temperature of Olive Ridley was exceeded 6%–21% of the time during the thermosensitive period of all nests (starting days 9–15 and ending days 33–37 of incubation), and the upper thermal tolerance limit was rarely reached. However, nests closer to concrete walls were up to 1°C warmer than those farther away, and 30–40 more eggs per nest raised average temperatures by 0.7°C. These findings suggest that distance to hatchery walls and egg numbers per nest can be tools to manipulate nest temperatures and sex ratios. The sex ratios in this study were slightly female-biased. However, optimal sex ratios remain poorly understood, and reliance on ex situ incubation may reduce population adaptability to environmental changes. Ex situ nest conditions in our study displayed lower temperatures than potential in situ conditions, which exceeded the lethal threshold in 86% (z-test, p &lt; 0.001) of the measurements. Our study emphasizes the need for careful hatchery management to safeguard sea turtles against the effects of climate change but also to avoid the consequences of overcompensation due to mismanagement.

本数据集采集自危地马拉太平洋沿岸某海龟孵化场的巢温数据。2021年，研究人员将温度记录仪埋入22个榄蠵龟（Olive Ridley sea turtle，*Lepidochelys olivacea*）的巢穴中，在整个孵化周期内每小时记录一次巢内温度。

**相关研究论文摘要：**
气候变化对具有温度依赖型性别决定（temperature-dependent sex determination）机制的物种构成了显著威胁，海龟即为这类物种的典型代表。海龟保护工作通常涉及将天然巢穴迁移至孵化场，这一手段在危地马拉太平洋沿岸尤为关键——该区域几乎无天然巢穴可成功孵化幼龟，当地海龟种群高度依赖孵化场开展繁育。然而，目前鲜有针对巢温与环境及管理因素关联的监测研究，因此亟需相关研究以优化人工巢穴管理方案与孵化场设计。

本研究探讨了孵化场墙体距离、每巢卵数、巢穴内位置、发育阶段、季节及天气条件对榄蠵龟巢穴温度波动的影响。研究结果显示，绝大多数巢穴的温度处于适宜孵化的范围，且接近榄蠵龟的关键温度（pivotal temperature）。

在所有巢穴的温度敏感发育期（thermosensitive period，该阶段为孵化第9~15天至第33~37天）内，榄蠵龟的关键温度有6%~21%的时间被突破，但极少有巢穴温度达到其耐热上限。不过，距离混凝土墙体更近的巢穴温度可比远离墙体的巢穴高出最高1℃；每巢卵数每增加30~40枚，巢穴平均温度会升高0.7℃。上述结果表明，可通过调整与孵化场墙体的距离及每巢卵数来调控巢温与性别比例。本研究中的性别比例略微偏向雌性。

但目前人们对最优性别比例的认知仍较为匮乏，且依赖迁地孵化（ex situ incubation）可能会降低种群对环境变化的适应能力。本研究中迁地巢穴的温度低于潜在的原位（in situ）巢穴温度，而原位巢穴的温度在86%的监测数据中超过了致死阈值（z检验，*p* < 0.001）。本研究强调，需谨慎开展孵化场管理工作，既要保护海龟免受气候变化的影响，也要避免因管理不当导致过度补偿所带来的不良后果。