Monitoring and Conservation of Important Sea Turtle Feeding Grounds in the Patok Area of Albania ANNUAL REPORT December 2009 M. White1,6, I. Haxhiu2,3, B. Vrenozi2,3, M. Rumano4 , X. Gërdeci5, E. Kararaj5, M. Mitro5, L. Petri5, D. Përkeqi5, E.Saçdanaku5, B.Trezhnjevna5, L. Boura6, K. Grimanis6, P. Robinson6 & L. Venizelos6 . Centro Recupero Tartarughe Marine, Lampedusa1; Museum of Natural Sciences, University of Tirana2; Herpetofauna Albanian Society3; Ministry of Environment, Tirana4; Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Tirana5; MEDASSET‐ The Mediterranean Association to Save the Sea Turtles6. Correspondence to: Dr Michael White, c/o Centro Recupero Tartarughe Marine, 92010 Lampedusa (AG), Italy. E‐mail: [email protected] “Monitoring and Conservation of Important Sea Turtle Feeding Grounds in the Patok Area of Albania” 2009 PROJECT REPORT Table of Contents 1. Background ....................................................................................................................4 2. Monitoring and Conservation of Important Sea Turtle Feeding Grounds in the Patok Area of Albania 2008‐2010 ........................................................................................................4 3. Overview of the 2009 Phase..........................................................................................5 3.1. Project partners .............................................................................................................6 3.2. Endorsements ................................................................................................................7 3.3. Funders ..........................................................................................................................8 3.4. Main Project Team.........................................................................................................8 4. Field work.......................................................................................................................9 4.1. Study area ......................................................................................................................9 4.2. Field work launch.........................................................................................................10 4.3. Sea Turtle Data Collection............................................................................................10 4.3.1. Size‐classes of turtles...................................................................................................11 4.3.2. Recaptures ...................................................................................................................12 4.3.3. Presence of males........................................................................................................12 4.3.4. Remigrants ...................................................................................................................12 4.3.5. Flipper‐tagging and Photo‐recognition........................................................................12 4.3.6. Incremental growth for remigrants.............................................................................13 4.3.7. At‐sea encounter .........................................................................................................14 4.3.8. Health status ................................................................................................................15 4.3.9. Overwintering monitoring 2008‐2009.........................................................................15 4.4. Fishermen ....................................................................................................................16 4.5. Abiotic factors..............................................................................................................18 5. Capacity Building, Education and Awareness Raising..................................................18 5.1. Training of Students as Project Research Assistants (RAs)..........................................18 5.2. Awareness‐raising and educational outreach activities..............................................20 5.3. Student field‐trips from Tirana University...................................................................21 5.4. Building capacity within the Herpetofauna Albanian Society (HAS) ...........................21 6. Dissemination of Results..............................................................................................22 7. Satellite tracking ..........................................................................................................23 2 “Monitoring and Conservation of Important Sea Turtle Feeding Grounds in the Patok Area of Albania” 2009 PROJECT REPORT 7.1. Rationale ......................................................................................................................23 7.2. Attachment of transmitters.........................................................................................23 7.3. Biographical details of telemetered turtles.................................................................25 7.4. Route maps to date......................................................................................................27 7.5. Data Summary..............................................................................................................27 8. DNA profiling................................................................................................................28 8.1. Rationale ......................................................................................................................28 8.2. Tissue sampling protocol .............................................................................................29 8.3. Dissemination of results ..............................................................................................30 9. Pollution survey ...........................................................................................................30 10. Conclusions ..................................................................................................................31 11. Marine Protected Area (MPA) .....................................................................................32 12. 2010 ‐ Towards the implementation of a national strategy to effectively monitor and protect marine turtles in Albania......................................................................................33 13. Acknowledgements......................................................................................................34 14. Bibliography .................................................................................................................34 15. Annexes........................................................................................................................41 Photos on page 1: ‐ Left: Male turtle (Guximtari) fitted with transmitter before release. ‐ Right: Research Assistant Enerit Saçdanaku and Mr Zhgjuni (Responsible for bycatch monitoring in Godull) with biology students on a field trip. 3 “Monitoring and Conservation of Important Sea Turtle Feeding Grounds in the Patok Area of Albania” 2009 PROJECT REPORT 1. Background Despite its richness in biological and landscape diversity, Albania is considered to have the highest rate of biodiversity loss in Europe. Uncontrolled human activity and pressure from low socio‐economic standards have extensively damaged the ecological values of the coastal area. The Albanian coast has received very little attention in the past. In the Balkans, sea turtle nesting is monitored in Greece, while foraging and overwintering habitats are monitored in Croatia and Slovenia. Turtles passing through Albania’s coastal and offshore waters when migrating between habitats in these three countries and their interaction with fishing activities, have been poorly monitored until now. The presence of marine turtles in Albanian waters has been known since 1979 (Haxhiu 1979, 1980, 1981, 1985, 1995 and 1998, Haxhiu & Rumano 2005, 2006). Research at the Patok area had been conducted by the Herpetofauna Albanian Society (H.A.S) through two projects: “Marine Turtle Conservation: Protection, public awareness and tagging” 2002‐2005; “Monitoring of Sea Turtles in Patok area” 2005–2007. The first joint project of HAS and MEDASSET in Albania’s marine environment, was undertaken Patok: [N41°38.191’; E019°35.327’] An area in 2005 through a “Rapid Assessment Survey of rich in biodiversity and an important feeding important Marine Turtle and Monk Seal habitats ground for sea turtles. Located in the Adriatic in the coastal area of Albania” (White et al. Sea (Mediterranean Basin) off the northern 2006), which laid the groundwork for the present coast of Albania Project. 2. Monitoring and Conservation of Important Sea Turtle Feeding Grounds in the Patok Area of Albania 2008‐2010 The three‐year Project “Monitoring and Conservation of Important Sea Turtle Feeding Grounds in the Patok Area of Albania 2008‐2010” aims to contribute to sea turtle and habitat conservation, population dynamics, migratory routes monitoring, capacity building, environmental education and awareness‐raising in Albania. 2008 → Baseline surveys and training. 2009 → Emphasis on Capacity building and awareness raising. 2010 → National expansion of activities. The project directly contributes to the implementation of the Strategic Action Programme for the Conservation of Biological Diversity in the Mediterranean Region (SAP BIO) and of the Action