Download Mixed Stock Analysis of Juvenile Hawksbill Sea Turtles (Eretmochelys Imbricata) at Brewers Bay and Hawksbill Cove, St. Thomas, USVI Book in PDF, Epub and Kindle
Marine turtles’ complex life histories present substantial challenges in identifying population boundaries and relationships due to their highly migratory behaviors, philopatry, and wide dispersal throughout large areas of tropical and subtropical latitudes. Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) research has identified rookery-specific haplotypes that represent isolated populations with potentially limited gene flow, which results in nesting populations having a unique genetic signature. Juvenile populations at dispersed foraging grounds are composed of a diverse genetic mixture from multiple nesting locations. Analysis of the genetic composition of turtles from foraging locations could inform general life history patterns like the variations in habitat use, migration, and dispersal and suggest the natal origin of specific populations. Brewers Bay and Hawksbill Cove (BBHC), in St Thomas US Virgin Islands has been the site of in water research on the movement and behavior of hawksbill sea turtles (Eretmochelys imbricata). However, no studies have focused on how they connect with nesting populations in the Caribbean. Therefore, we collected tissue samples from 59 juvenile hawksbill turtles that were hand-captured to genetically characterize the structure of this foraging ground using mitochondrial DNA. All turtles captured were within the juvenile size class and ranged from 19.5 cm to 65.0 cm curved carapace length. Recapture rates confirm residency within BBHC with 32 individuals being recaptured at least once between 2014 and 2019. Ten haplotypes were found; EiA01 appeared 24 times, EiA11 appeared 14 times, EiA09 appeared 6 times, EiA83 appeared 4 times, EiA02, EiA24, EiA41, and EiA43 each appeared 2 times, and EiA12 and EiA23 each appeared 1 time. These haplotypes were compared against previously characterized rookeries throughout the Caribbean to determine the most likely origins for the St. Thomas population. An analysis of the ten haplotypes using the program BAYES suggested that the biggest contributing source to this juvenile population was the leeward side of Barbados, with lesser but notable contributions from nesting populations from windward side of Barbados, Nicaragua, Guadeloupe, and Sandy Point, St. Croix. The results presented from this study are an important contribution to the baseline data of foraging ground connections to natal beaches, which is essential for designing management plans for population recovery.