Nesting activity of Olive ridley and effect of artificial shade at Cascajilloso Beach, a new inhabited nesting site in Pacific Panama

Sea turtle nesting activity on newly monitored beaches yields important data to support future regional and global conservation assessments. Here we report on nesting activity of Olive Ridley (Lepidochelys olivacea) at Cascajilloso Beach in Pacific Panama based on data from a new hatchery during seasons 2019, 2020 and 2021. Besides, we conducted a field experiment analyzing the effects of artificial shading on hatchlings’ biometric characteristics, hatching success and the incubation period. Nesting activity based on number of egg clutches transferred to the hatchery reached a peak between September (33%) and October (25%). Curved carapace length (CCL) of nesting females (64.3–66.2 cm) was similar to other populations of the Eastern Tropical Pacific (ETP). The number of egg clutches was 80 in 2019, 74 in 2020 and 108 in 2021, however, the clutch size was slightly smaller (91.5 to 94.5 eggs) compared with other populations of the ETP. This could be a phenotypic variation of nesting femal..., Study site
Cascajilloso Beach is located on the west coast of the Azuero Peninsula in Pacific Panama (7°22'N, 80°54'W, Figure 1). The beach length is 6.7 km and beach width is 30 m. L. olivacea, Chelonia mydas and Eretmochelys imbricata are reported to nest at the site (Flores et al. 2021). The sand is gray to black with the Pavo river mouth bordering the southern extreme of the beach. The vegetation of the beach includes: Cocos nucifera, Terminalia catappa, Canavalia rosea, Sphageticola trilobata and some grasses (Flores et al., 2021). 
Beach patrolling and nesting females
Beach patrols were conducted on foot every night when possible and depending on meteorological conditions during the nesting seasons. The patrol team was composed of two park rangers from MiAmbiente and occasionally a community member from Arenas town. Patrol duration (hours) was calculated from the time a beach survey started until the time it ended. We also calculated the per-kilometer patrol duration (hours per km..., All the data files can be open using MSExcel., This README file was generated on 2023-03-27 by Eric E. Flores.

GENERAL INFORMATION

1. Title of Dataset: Nesting activity of Olive ridley and effect of artificial shade at Cascajilloso Beach, a new inhabited nesting site in Pacific Panama.
2. Author Information
A. Principal Investigator Contact Information
Name: Eric E. Flores
Institution: Coiba Scientific Station (COIBA AIP)
Address: Gustavo Lara street, building 145B, City of Knowledge, Clayton, PO Box 0843-01853, Panama, Republic of Panama

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Email: [e-mail]
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B. Associate or Co-investigator Contact Information
Name: Joelbin Rafael De La Cruz
Institution: Ministry of Environment of Panama, Protected Areas and Biodiversity Directorate
Address: Bldg. 804, Albrook, Ancon, Panama, Republic of Panama

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Email: [e-mail]
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3. Date of data collection (single date, range, approximate date): 2019-2021
4. Geographic location of data collection: Cascajilloso beach, Panama
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