Gulf Turtle Tracking Project 2011

Emirates Wildlife Society-WWF

Dataset credit

Data provider
Emirates Wildlife Society WWF - Marine Research Foundation
Originating data center
Satellite Tracking and Analysis Tool (STAT)
Project partner
This project is implemented by the Emirates Wildlife Society and the Marine Research Foundation.

EWS (Emirates Wildlife Society) is a local environmental NGO working at a federal level to promote the conservation of nature in the UAE. To better achieve its goals, EWS has partnered with one of the world's largest and most experienced conservation organization, WWF. Within the UAE, EWS-WWF aims to protect and conserve the unique nature of the region by developing and implementing projects that actively deal with conservation and protection of nature. So far, projects have included the establishment of protected areas, protection of species and habitats and increasing environmental awareness through education programmes. EWS-WWF works with local government and non-governmental organisations including Dubai Municipality, the Environmental Agency-Abu Dhabi (EAD), EPDA in Ras Al Khaimah, EPAA in Sharjah and Fujairah Municipality.

The Marine Research Foundation, based in Sabah, Malaysia, was established to further the understanding of marine ecosystems and their associated diverse flora and fauna in Southeast Asia and other Indo-Pacific sites. The Foundation carries out a number of projects related to biodiversity assessment and conservation, and seeks to provide management-oriented solutions to Government administrations and conservationists. Based in Malaysia, MRF runs projects in numerous countries and has a key focus area in the Middle East, with current direct involvement in marine turtle projects in Qatar, UAE, and Oman, and past involvement in projects in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, and Yemen.

Regional project partners include:

Iran - Department of Environment

Oman - Ministry of Environment and Climate Affairs and Environment Society of Oman

Qatar- Environmental Studies Center (Qatar University), Ministry of Environment and Ras Laffan Industrial City

United Arab Emirates- Environment Agency Abu Dhabi, Emirates Wildlife Society / WWF, Emirates Marine Environment Group

Contacts

RoleNameOrganization 
Primary contact Marina Antonopoulou Emirates Wildlife Society WWF - Marine Research Foundation
Data entry Michael Coyne seaturtle.org

Citation

Abstract

Marine turtle populations around the globe are threatened through over-harvesting and habitat loss. In the Gulf region, marine turtles have provided food at a subsistence level to fisherman and coastal dwellers since time immemorial. Evidence of this dates back five thousand years! Turtles have also been used traditionally for their fat and meat, and their eggs have fed families dependent on the bounty of the sea. But with increased coastal use and industrialization, and the advent of outboard motors and access to distant markets, the loss of turtles and their eggs has reached a level from which populations are struggling to recover. Turtle eggs, which used to be collected on an occasional, irregular basis, are now collected nearly every single time a nesting female emerges on the beach. Of even greater concern is the increased coastal development - industrialization and urbanization have resulted in severe habitat loss and alteration, and industrialised fisheries, which decimate turtles while at sea, continue to grow. Today, critical measures are urgently needed to safeguard the few remaining turtle nesting sites, their feeding and breeding sites at sea, and their migratory pathways.

The project links together numerous stakeholders, from Government agencies to NGOs to the private sector, and will combine scientific research and monitoring with environment awareness centered on marine turtle protection â€" and bring about regional change â€"positive change resulting in long-term conservation of marine turtles.
This project, using capacity building, awareness raising and satellite tracking and monitoring of marine turtles in the Gulf region as operational building blocks, aims to develop a marine turtle conservation action plan through the results of a three year project with the following objectives:

• Develop strategic partnerships amongst government agencies, NGOs and the private sector at both National and Regional levels;
• Raise the awareness of marine turtle conservation needs at National and Regional levels;
• Elucidate the post-nesting migrations and biology of marine turtles using satellite tracking;
• Identify foraging grounds of endangered marine turtles and linkages between nesting and feeding population assemblages;
• Share tracking data and findings to relevant authorities and contribute to the development of a regional marine turtle conservation plan;
• Integrate these conservation initiatives within international conservation agreements on marine turtles and national programmes.

Purpose

N/A

Supplemental information

Visit STAT's project page for additional information.

References

Attributes

Overview

This section explains attributes included in the original dataset. OBIS-SEAMAP restricts the attributes available to the public to date/time, lat/lon and species names/counts only. Should you need other attributes described here, you are encouraged to contact the data provider.

Attributes described below represent those in the original dataset provided by the provider.
Only minimum required attributes are visible and downloadable online. Other attributes may be obtained upon provider's permission.

Attributes in dataset

Attribute (table column)Description
prognumProgram number
tag_idPTT ID
lcLocation class
iqQuality indicator
dir1Dir 1
nb_mesNumber of messages received
big_nb_mesdefinition not provided
best_levelBest signal strength in dB
pass_durationPass duration in seconds
nopcNumber Of Plausibility Checks successful (from 0-4)
calcul_freqCalculated frequency
altitudeAltitude used for location calculation
sensorsSensors
speciesSpecies name
project_idSTAT Project ID
lc_filterParameters to location filtering
speed_filterParameters to speed filtering
distance_filterParameters to distance filtering
topo_filterParameters to topo filtering
time_filterParameters to time filtering
angle_filterParameters to angle filtering
life_stageLife stage of the animal
genderGender of the animal
wetdryWet or dry
wetdry_filterParameters to Wet or dry filterint
obs_datetimeDate and time (local time zone)
timezone_hTime difference from UTC
OBIS-SEAMAP ID1257
Seabirds0
Marine mammals0
Sea turtles23,710
Rays and sharks0
Other species0
Non spatial0
Non species0
Total23,710
Date, Begin2011-04-13
Date, End2013-07-12
Temporal prec.111111
Latitude19.75 - 28.00
Longitude50.59 - 71.26
Coord. prec.3 decimal digits
PlatformTag
Data typeTelemetry location
TracklinesYES (ID: 1258)
Traveled (km)113,291
Travel hours201,995
Contr. throughSatellite Tracking and Analysis Tool
Registered2015-03-24
Updated2024-02-29
StatusPublished
Sharing policy Permission required
Shared with SWOT
OBIS*
GBIF (via DOI)*
* Aggregated summary
See metadata in static HTML
See metadata in FGDC XML
See download history / statistics