A number of sea turtle species are at serious risk of extinction, with loggerhead turtles, green turtles, hawksbill turtles and leatherback turtles all officially classed as under threat.
A key aim of conservationists is to protect the baby turtles when they hatch.
Predators are a natural challenge, but hatchlings can become disoriented by city and street lights, and many will head towards them rather than make for the sea.
In order to be on hand when they hatch, conservationists must predict the timings based on when the eggs were laid and keep a watch on the nest.
This is labour-intensive and inaccurate, but a new monitoring system enables scientists to monitor the eggs remotely.
Dubbed ‘TurtleSense’, the technology is based around a sensor that itself resembles a turtle’s egg.
The circuitry includes an accelerometer to sense movement and vibration in and around the nest and a temperature sensor to check for heat variations.
There is also a microprocessor on a small circuit board, and all the circuitry is enclosed in a polyurethane sphere resembling the egg of a sea turtle.
The sensor is designed to look like the egg of a sea turtle
The sphere helps keep moisture away from the circuitry and also allows it to blend in with the actual eggs as it is a similar shape, size and colour.
The ‘sensor’ egg is attached by cable to an external communication tower located near the nest.
This communication unit is able to remotely and automatically send data on the movements and temperature fluctuations inside the nest.
In tests, the TurtleSense system collected data that allowed the researchers to establish a pattern of intense movement followed by a pause.
This enabled them to predict the exact day that the hatchlings would head out and suggests that the hatchlings themselves can detect the motion of their siblings around them.
This would allow them to communicate and emerge from the nest at the same time.
The tests were also able to identify nests that were sadly no longer viable, allowing efforts to be focused on the ones that were.
The researchers claim that their system can help reduce the costs and resources needed to monitor the nesting sites of endangered sea turtles.
They could also potentially reduce the duration of beach closures at nesting sites and encourage ‘turtle-based ecotourism’.
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