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Sea turtle diving and foraging behaviour around the Greek Island of Kefalonia

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 August 2000

Jonathan D.R. Houghton
Affiliation:
School of Biological Sciences, University of Wales Swansea, Singleton Park, Swansea, SA2 8PP, Wales
Andrew Woolmer
Affiliation:
School of Biological Sciences, University of Wales Swansea, Singleton Park, Swansea, SA2 8PP, Wales
Graeme C. Hays
Affiliation:
School of Biological Sciences, University of Wales Swansea, Singleton Park, Swansea, SA2 8PP, Wales

Abstract

The discovery of a shallow water (<2 m) foraging site off the Greek Island of Kefalonia, where diving and foraging behaviour of male loggerhead turtles (Caretta caretta) could be observed simultaneously, was of great interest. The preferred food sources were shown to be the bivalve mollusc Mytilus galloprovincialis, the sea grass Posidonia oceanica, and the entrails of fish discarded by local fishermen. Whilst foraging, the turtles generally rested on the seabed and employed their forelimbs to clear away detritus from their selected prey. Foraging dives were of short duration (mean ±SE = 2.3 ±0.43 min, N=96) compared to deeper dives reported in the literature presumably, because of the small lung volumes required to attain neutral buoyancy at such shallow depths.

Type
Brief Report
Copyright
2000 Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom

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