Hawksbills tagged with coded acoustic transmitters

Easygrants ID: 22006 National Fish and Wildlife Foundation NFWF/Legacy Grant Project ID: 2010-0103-000 Sea Turtle Conservation Keystone Fund Spring 2010 - Submit Final Programmatic Report (Activities and Outcomes) Grantee Organization: Equilibrio Azul Project Title: Hawksbill Conservation in Coastal Ecuador Project Period 08/01/2010-07/01/2011 Award Amount $35,000.00 Matching Contributions $46,300.00 Project Location Description (from Proposal) The project will take place in the Southern-Central coast of Ecuador. Mainly at the Machalilla National Park.The only identified nesting area for hawksbills in South America so far (See Map). Project Summary (from Proposal) Summary of Accomplishments Lessons Learned Apply research techniques to increase knowledge about the distribution, habitat preference, threats, and migratory paths of hawksbill turtles along the coast of Ecuador. During this project we were able to install acoustic and satellites transmitters on Hawksbills (Eretmochelys imbricata) and use the resulting data to pin point important Hawksbill sites within and next to the Machalilla National Park (MNP) and in Southern Ecuador. We have registered a nesting population of 21 females and the return of three nesters to La Playita, the only identified Hawksbill nesting beach in South America. We have emphasized the importance of La Playita with government officials and the general public. Our data dissemination efforts have resulted in the publication of several scientific papers and newspaper articles. We learned that the best way to strengthen our relationship with MNP authorities is to invite them to part-take in our field work. By doing so we have a unique opportunity to exchange views and bond as conservation partners. Another important lesson learned is that more and continuous diffusion about Hawksbill conservation is needed at both local and regional scales. Hawksbills tagged with coded acoustic transmitters # of turtles tagged Value at Grant Completion 8 Hawksbills tagged with satellite transmitters # of turtles tagged Value at Grant Completion 5 Capture-recapture program started for hawksbills Other (# hours of capturing effort) Value at Grant Completion 100 Selection of additional critical sites for hawksbills in the coast of Ecuador Other (# of sites selected and visited) Value at Grant Completion 4 Hawksbills tracked with acoustic telemetry Other (# of tracking hours) Value at Grant Completion 6 Hawksbill data dissemination plan Other (# of press articles and materials) Value at Grant Completion 8 Conservation Outcome(s) Small-scale habitat analysis for hawksbills at the MNP marine area Conservation Indicator Metric(s) Other (# of habitat and distribution maps created) Baseline Metric Value 0 Metric Value at Grant Completion 2 Page 1 of 18

Long-term Goal Metric Value 4 Year in which Long Term Metric 2012 Value is Anticipated Conservation Outcome(s) Large-scale habitat analysis along the coast of Ecuador Conservation Indicator Metric(s) Other (# of national distribution maps created) Baseline Metric Value 0 Metric Value at Grant Completion 1 Long-term Goal Metric Value 2 Year in which Long Term Metric 2012 Value is Anticipated Conservation Outcome(s) Assessment of identified critical grounds for hawksbills in the coast of Ecuador: Conservation Indicator Metric(s) Other (# of evaluated sites) Baseline Metric Value 2 Metric Value at Grant Completion 6 Long-term Goal Metric Value 9 Year in which Long Term Metric 2012 Value is Anticipated Conservation Outcome(s) Hawksbill knowledge increased in authorities and public Conservation Indicator Metric(s) Other (# of general scientific and media publications or materials) Baseline Metric Value 8 Metric Value at Grant Completion 14 Long-term Goal Metric Value 20 Year in which Long Term Metric 2012 Value is Anticipated Page 2 of 18

Final Programmatic Report Narrative Instructions: Save this document on your computer and complete the narrative in the format provided. The final narrative should not exceed ten (10) pages; do not delete the text provided below. Once complete, upload this document into the on-line final programmatic report task as instructed. 1. Summary of Accomplishments In four to five sentences, provide a brief summary of the project s key accomplishments and outcomes that were observed or measured. During this project we were able to install acoustic and satellites transmitters on Hawksbills (Eretmochelys imbricata) and use the resulting data to pin point important Hawksbill sites within and next to the Machalilla National Park (MNP) and in Southern Ecuador. We have registered a nesting population of 21 females and the return of three nesters to La Playita, the only identified Hawksbill nesting beach in South America. We have emphasized the importance of La Playita with government officials and the general public. Our data dissemination efforts have resulted in the publication of several scientific papers and newspaper articles. 2. Project Activities & Outcomes Activities Describe the primary activities conducted during this grant and explain any discrepancies between the activities conducted from those that were proposed. A) : Hawksbills tagged with acoustic transmitters : # of turtles tagged Value at Grant Completion: 8 During this project nine acoustic transmitters were installed on hawksbills. This means that we placed one more transmitter that what was originally proposed. Of the nine transmitters, two were of the continuous type and seven of the coded type. Table 1 shows a list of the acoustic transmitters installed. Table 1 Acoustic transmitters installed on Hawksbills during the project. Transmitter Type Transmitter ID Date Installed Specimen coded 47994 07/12/2010 juvenile coded 47996 08/12/2010 adult male coded 48902 19/01/2011 adult continuous 1077926 20/01/2011 nester coded 1085943 20/01/2011 nester coded 48908 08/02/2011 adult continuous 1092830 15/02/2011 nester coded 48906 22/02/2011 adult coded 48910 10/03/2011 adult female The continuous transmitters allowed us to carry out Hawksbill small scale habitat analysis and pin-point some critical areas within and next to the MNP (see section D below for some maps). Also, it is worth mentioning that we installed acoustic transmitter signal receiver stations in our study area. Page 3 of 18

B) : Hawksbills tagged with satellite transmitters : # of turtles tagged Value at Grant Completion: 5 Here we were only able to install two satellite transmitters of the five initially proposed. Unfortunately, three transmitters did not arrive on time (e.g. before the end of the nesting season) due to Ecuadorian customs delays. Table 2 lists the satellite tags that we installed on Hawksbill nesters during this project. The satellite tags gave mixed results with limited use. For instance, Sonia transmitted data for 60 days but the device seems to have malfunctioned as some of the signals were sent from land (see Figure 2a). Delfina, in the other hand did transmit some interesting data but only for 10 days. Delfina s path confirms the southern migration that we have registered in the past. An article by Gaos et al. (2011) makes use of data that were sent by hawkbills tagged by our organization (see item 1 in Table 3 for a link to the article) Transmitter Type Transmitter ID Date Installed Specimen Days Transmitted Name satellite 79786J22439 13/03/2011 nester 10 Delfina satellite 17437J22439 14/03/2011 nester 60 Sonia Url http://www.seaturtle.org/tracki ng/index.shtml?tag_id=79786 http://www.seaturtle.org/tracki ng/index.shtml?tag_id=17434 2a 2b Sonia Delfina Figure 1 Large scale movement of satellite tagged Hawksbills. As mentioned above three satellite transmitters did not arrive on time; however, we did all three transmitters proposed initially. We hope to install the three remaining transmitter this upcoming nesting season (November, 2011 to April, 2011) as advised by our scientific partners in the USA (e.g. NOAH, ICAPO). C) : Capture-recapture program started for hawksbills : Other (# hours of capturing effort) Value at Grant Completion: 100 In terms of this conservation activity we were able to complete the 100 hours of capturing effort (in the water). In fact, we completed 114 hours of capturing Hawksbills in the water. Table 2 shows a monthly breakdown of our invested capturing effort and the number of Hawksbills captured. Of the 24 Hawksbills captured 12 were new captures. Similarly, Figure 2 shows the locations where some of our in-water captures and re-captures took place. O Table 2 Number of in-water capture hours and Hawksbill captured during the project Year Month No. Hours in the Water No. Turtles Captured 2010 8 3 0 2010 9 15 4 2010 10 6 1 2010 11 15 4 Page 4 of 18

2010 12 18 5 2011 1 6 1 2011 2 15 4 2011 3 12 3 2011 4 6 1 2011 5 6 0 2011 6 6 1 2011 7 6 0 Total 114 24 Figure 2 Locations of Hawksbill in-water captures carried out during the project. D) : Selection of additional critical sites for hawksbills in the coast of Ecuador Other (# of sites selected and visited) Value at Grant Completion 4 During the period of this project we were able to identify four Hawksbill critical sites in the coast of Ecuador. Two sites, Punta Gruesa & Piedra Caida and Bajo Los Frailes, are found within the MNP boundaries; whereas, Bajo de Salango is found outside the park (Figure 3). Costa Rica which is the fourth site selected and visited during this project, is located in the mangrove forests of Southern Ecuador (Jambeli Archipelago), right next to the Peruvian border (Figure 4). It is worth mentioning that two of the sites, Bajo de Salango and Bajo Los Frailes, were found thanks to the acoustic tags we placed on Hawksbill nesters and to the acoustic tracking we carried out (see part E for a map of the tracks). Similarly, the site in southern Ecuador was found due to the satellite tags we placed on nesters at the end of the 2009-2010 nesting season. At a location known as Punta Gruesa we have been able to capture nine Hawksbills. Similarly, we have been able to capture Hawksbills nine different times at a location known as Piedra Caida. These two sites are right next to each other; hence, we have defined a critical area as Punta Gruesa & Piedra Caida. This enlongated strip of water lies within the MNP limits and is close to La Playita (Figure 3), the only identified Hawksbill nesting beach in South America. Page 5 of 18

Figure 3 This map shows three Hawksbill critical sites (areas) selected during this project. One of them (Bajo Salango) is lies out of the MNP boundaries. Figure 4 This map shows the fourth Hawksbill critical site selected during this project (area between green points) and also some Green Turtle sighting and capture locations. Unfortunately, the Hawksbill area within the Jambeli Archipelago could not be visited due to security issues. E) : Hawksbills tracked with acoustic telemetry Other (# of tracking hours) Value at Grant Completion 6 Page 6 of 18

During this project we were able to track two Hawksbills with acoustic telemetry (e.g. continuous acoustic tags). The turtles tracked were nesting females that were followed after having laid their eggs. Figure 5 shows the small scale movements carried out by these turtles. A total of 120 tracking hours were completed for both turtles (one turtle was tracked for 48 hours; whereas, the second was tracked for 72 hours). The areas where this two Hawksbill spend most of their tracked time were later selected as critical sites (e.g. Bajo Salango and Bajo Los Frailes). Further inspection during the track revealed the presence of at least two males in addition to the tracked female (Hawksbill 1) in the southern area. Figure 5 Two Hawksbills were tracked during this project. Hawksbill 1 was tracked for 48 hours, whereas Hawksbill 2 was tracked for 72 hours. F) : Hawksbill data dissemination plan Other: (# of press articles and materials) Value at Grant Completion: 8 During the period of performance of this project several press articles and related materials were produced (Table 3). As it can be seen in Table 3, the results obtained during this project together with that of other projects, has allowed us to contribute to the production of scientific papers. Similarly, we have worked hard to get the media to cover Hawksbill conservation issues. We are convinced that we have been able to increase Hawksbill knowledge in the scientific community as well as in the general public. Table 3 List of the most recent and important data dissemination materials produced during this project. No. Title/News Heading Article Type Media Outlets Language URL 1 Shifting the lifehistory paradigm: discovery of novel habitat use by hawksbill turtles scientific journal Conservation Biology English http://www.equilibrioazul.org/spanish/publi caciones.html Page 7 of 18

2 3 4 5 Signs of hope in the eastern Pacific: international collaboration reveals encouraging status for severely depleted populations of hawksbill turtle Eretmochelys imbricata Resolviendo el misterio de las tortugas carey Nuevas tortugas carey anidan en Ecuador, único país sudamericano al que van Tortugas Carey cambian de hábitat para protegerse de las amenazas scientific journal Oryx English Web Article Conservation International Spanish Newpaper Article Noticiero Diario Spanish Newpaper Article Ecuador Ciencia Spanish http://www.equilibrioazul.org/spanish/publi caciones.html http://www.conservation.org.ec/noticias/det alle_noticia.php?recordid=82 http://noticierodiario.com.ar/nuevastortugas-carey-anidan-en-ecuador-unicopais-sudamericano-al-que-van/ http://www.ecuadorciencia.org/noticias.asp?id=10693&fc=20110924 6 Hay esperanza para las tortugas Carey Newpaper Article El Universo Spanish http://www.eluniverso.com/2011/09/11/1/1 430/hay-esperanza-tortugas-carey.html 7 Cinco nuevas tortugas carey llegan a costas de Ecuador para anidar Newpaper Article El Universo Spanish http://www.eluniverso.com/2011/01/18/1/1 430/cinco-nuevas-tortugas-carey-llegancostas-ecuador-anidar.html 8 Estado de las Tortugas Marinas en el Ecuador Radio Show Radio Vision Spanish http://www.ivoox.com/andres-baqueroequilibrio-azul-pablo-santillan-audiosmp3_rf_715392_1.html In addition, our organization has actively participated in several events. During these events, we have successfully placed issues surrounding Hawksbills and their conservation on the discussion table. Table4 shows a list of the major events we have participated during this project. Table 4 List of major events our organization has participated during the period of the present project. Event name Organizer Place of event Date Simposio de Biodiversidad Marina y Costera de Latinoamerica y el Caribe Ministerio de Ambiente del Ecuador Manta 9/12/2010 to 12/12/2010 Proyecto de Manejo de Recursos Pesqueros Planificación de Agenda Común de Actividades de educación Ambiental 31st Annual Symposium of Sea Turtle Biology Subsecretaria de Gestion Marina y Costero Parque Nacional Machalilla San Diego Sea Turlte.org Guayaquil Puerto Lopez San Diego (USA) 20/01/2011 08/02/2011 12/04/2011 to 15/04/2011 Reunión para la elaboración de Informacion Pais de la Covención Interamericana para la protección y conservación de la tortugas marinas (CIT) Ministerio de Ambiente del Ecuador y Parque Nacional Galápagos Guayaquil 20/04/2011 Desayuno de Trabajo para periodistas y comunicadores/as "Consservación de Tortugas Marinas en Ecuador" Reunion del Grupo de Trabajo sobre Biodiversidad Marina y Costera Asamblea Cantonal para la Formulación del Plan de Desarrollo y Ordenamiento Territorial del cantón Puerto López Fundación METIS Grupo de Trabajo sobre Biodiversidad Marina y Costera Municipalidad de Pueerto López y Gobierno provincial de Manabí Portoviejo, Guayaquil, Esmeraldas 18/05/2011 20/05/2011 23/05/2011 Quito 19/05/2011 Puerto Lopez 04/07/2011 Parque Nacional Machalilla - Puerto Lopez Concurso Ambiental 27/07/2011 USAID Page 8 of 18

Validación de la informaciones para la carecterización del Parque Nacional Machalilla Parque Nacional Machalilla Puerto Lopez 02/08/2011 Analisis de la información del primer borrador de la caracterización del Parque Nacional Machalilla Parque Nacional Machalilla Puerto Lopez 07/09/2011 Outcomes Describe progress towards achieving the project outcomes as proposed and briefly explain any discrepancies between your results compared to what was anticipated. Provide any further information (such as unexpected outcomes) important for understanding project activities and outcome results. As noted above we were able to accomplish all the project s goals except for the installation of only two out of the five satellite transmitters initially proposed. It is worth mentioning that as initially proposed, we did purchase two satellite transmitters with NFWF funds as proposed. Unfortunately, these transmitters did not arrive on time because of delays at Ecuadorian customs. For this reason, our scientific advisors recommended us to wait until the next nesting season to install the remaining satellite transmitters. This project was successful in many ways. First, it is worth highlighting that this project allowed us to visit the mangrove forests of southern Ecuador (close to the Peruvian border) to determine whether this area could be Hawksbill hotspots. During our site assessment we couldn t visit the spots pointed out by satellite transmitter data (green points in Fig.4) because of security issues (e.g. likely presence of pirates). However, the fishermen of the area told us that Hawksbills do fall on their nets but that green turtles are more abundant. Also, we learned that people in the area do eat sea turtles whenever they have a chance. They eat them not out of hunger or necessity but more because they have a taste for the meet and they believe that the blood has curative properties. Thus, it is imperative that we conduct research and educational campaigns in this area as our conservation efforts at the MNP will be of limited value if people in the south are eating Hawksbills. In the near future we will present a proposal to NFWF to carry out work in this southern area of Ecuador, which seems to be important for Hawksbill conservation. If we can further proof that MNP s Hawksbill nesting females go to Ecuador s southern estuaries, then we could make a case to the government to protect this area which is presently threaten by shrimp farming and other threats. Unfortunately, we could not compile enough data to produce a country-wide Hawksbill distribution map. However, the data we have gathered through this project will be crucial for the development of such map in the future. 3. Lessons Learned Describe the key lessons learned from this project, such as the least and most effective conservation practices or notable aspects of the project s methods, monitoring, or results. How could other conservation organizations adapt similar strategies to build upon some of these key lessons about what worked best and what did not? An important lesson we learned is how to build and maintain strong bridges with government officials, in our case MNP officials. In the past we used to do our research ourselves first and then later send a report to MNP authorities. This method of doing things achieved its purposes then but we realized we could do better. This time around we invited MNP staff to join us whenever we carried out novel research techniques. For instance, during this project we invited MNP staff to join us for the installation of satellite tags on Hawksbills. This proved to be the right decision as not only did park staff learn about satellite tagging but also as a group, we got to exchange views about research techniques and conservation. Also, MNP staff was able to take pictures of our field work and report directly to their superiors. Consequently, we have realized that it is very important for NGO and government staff to interact and bond; and perhaps, the best time to do so is while doing field work. We are convinced that our decision to invite MNP staff to join us in the field has made our working relationship much stronger and effective. Another important lesson learned is that more and continuous diffusion about Hawksbill conservation is needed in the region. For instance, MNP staff told us that recently in Jipijapa, a town close to the park; people were filmed killing a sea turtle and drinking its blood. These people claimed that the blood could cure asthma and other illnesses. The turtle appeared to be a Hawksbill. Similarly, during a site assessment trip we learned that people in the estuaries of the Jambeli Archipelago The (El views Oro and province) conclusions still contained eat turtles in this whenever document are they those have of the a authors chance. and Consequently, should not be interpreted it is clear as representing that more education Page 9 of 18

is needed at a local and regional scale, to make people aware of not only Hawksbill conservation but also about sea turtle zoonosis. 4. Dissemination Briefly identify any dissemination of project results and/or lessons learned to external audiences, such as the public or other conservation organizations. Specifically outline any management uptake and/or actions resulting from the project and describe the direct impacts of any capacity building activities. As mentioned in Question 2 (part F) of this report, our organization has disseminated the results its work in the form of several papers, press articles and a radio show. Further, during the period of this project we have disseminated our results at public events such as workshops, conferences, symposiums and exhibitions. At all these events we have always given Hawksbill conservation a centre stage. Machalilla National Park (MNP) authorities are thankful for the work done by our organization because it has placed the park s name on the world stage of Hawksbill conservation. This fact is reflected on the openness MNP officials have shown towards the idea of giving La Playita, the only identified Hawksbill nesting beach in South America, extra protection status. Our organization has recently applied for new NFWF funds to achieve (among other goals) the designation of La Playita as a special conservation site (e.g. Sea Turtle Sanctuary ). Our work with sea turtles, which has been funded in part by NFWF, has allowed us to become key partners of government institutions. This fact can be seen in a letter we are attaching to this report, where Ecuador s Ministry of Environment asks our organization to cooperate with their 2011Sea Turtle Protection Camping Our organization, being the only one carrying out sea turtle research and conservation in the MNP, has been instrumental in educating government officials and the public about sea turtle conservation in general and Hawksbill conservation in particular. For instance, in Puerto Lopez, the town right next to La Playita, people have become aware about the importance of this beach for Hawksbill conservation. This has been achieved through several workshops in which we have participated, media events and materials that have been created and disseminated among the public. (We will upload several examples of our dissemination efforts for NFWF to see.) Further, people in the village of Las Tunas are organizing themselves to monitor and patrol their beach as nesting events have been registered. This initiative has arisen in part thanks to our organization s capacity building activities carried out throughout the region. 5. Project Documents Include in your final programmatic report, via the Uploads section of this task, the following: 2-10 representative photos from the project. Photos need to have a minimum resolution of 300 dpi; Report publications, Power Point (or other) presentations, GIS data, brochures, videos, outreach tools, press releases, media coverage; Any project deliverables per the terms of your grant agreement. POSTING OF FINAL REPORT: This report and attached project documents may be shared by the Foundation and any Funding Source for the Project via their respective websites. In the event that the Recipient intends to claim that its final report or project documents contains material that does not have to be posted on such websites because it is protected from disclosure by statutory or regulatory provisions, the Recipient shall clearly mark all such potentially protected materials as PROTECTED and provide an explanation and complete citation to the statutory or regulatory source for such protection. Page 10 of 18