Duke North Atlantic Turtle Tracking

We are attaching satellite transmitters to loggerheads, green and
Kemp's ridley sea turtles to examine interaction between the turtles and
commercial fisheries in North Carolina. Turtles are commonly caught in fishing
gear in the sounds of North Carolina, particularly in the fall months when both
turtles and flounder are migrating to the ocean. Gill nets, in particular, have
been implicated in large mortality events and as a result this type of fishing
gear has been restricted to certain parts of Pamlico Sound. In addition, the
fall flounder gill net fishery has been closed prematurely in the past few
years due to observed mortalities of turtles. We are studying interactions
between turtles and gill nets by tracking the movements of turtles in and
around Pamlico Sound during the fall flounder season and comparing the
distribution of turtles with that of gill nets. In addition, we hope to gain
valuable life history information by following the migration patters of
individuals. We work closely with researchers from the Southeast Fisheries
Science Center, NOAA Fisheries, in this program. This research is funded by the
North Carolina Sea Grant's Fisheries Resource Grant program.

CURRENTNESS REFERENCE: ground condition

SPATIAL REFERENCE INFORMATION - GEODETIC MODEL
Horizontal Datum Name: D_WGS_1984
Ellipsoid Name: WGS_1984
Semi-major Axis: 6378137.000000
Denominator of Flattening Ratio: 298.257224