PIR Marine Turtle Database

Data collected in marine turtle research programs are diverse, ranging from isolated observations of incidental encounters with turtles on the high-seas to voluminous, complex behavioral data gathered in systematic surveys of nesting beaches or inshore habitats. Due to the different types of data the information is opportunistically and periodically collected. The study areas in this database include the Hawaiian Archipelago in the north, American Samoa and U. S. Pacific Remote Island Areas in the south, and the Mariana Archipelago in the west. Effective management of these data is essential to maximize their research value and enable timely population assessments and recovery monitoring. To provide such capabilities at the National Marine Fisheries Service, a comprehensive Turtle Data Processing System (TDPS, formerly called Marine Turtle Data Management System) was created. The system was written in DBase III and Clipper and implemented on IBM/PC-compatible computers running under MS-DOS. As of 2003, TDPS was upgraded into Microsoft Access. The TDPS is modular, supporting data of various types. Cross-referencing and multiple-encounter analysis are enabled through a core database file of individual turtle identifications, based on uniquely-inscribed flipper tags and passive-integrative transponder tags.

The Oracle Turtle Database Processing System (OTDPS) was designed to support marine turtle research at the National Marine Fisheries Service's (NMFS) Marine Turtle Biology and Assessment Program (MTBAP). It provides for the systematic storage, retrieval, and summarization of data collected in three source categories: (1) data pertaining to turtles found stranded on beaches or incidentally caught in nearshore fishing gear and reported to NMFS, (2) data collected by NMFS during survey of nearshore turtle habitat, and (3) data on nesting activity collected by NMFS, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) biologists, or other collaborating biologists from turtle nesting beaches. In all three categories, most turtles involved are uniquely identified through the application of flipper tags. Thus a key feature of the database is the ability to trace the history of encounters with individual turtles and cross-reference information among data sets. A central turtle ID file facilitates this.

Division: Protected Species

Division Director: Charles Littnan

Program: PSD Marine Turtle Biology and Assessment

Program Lead: T. Todd Jones

Authorities: Endangered Species Act

Ownership: PIFSC

Temporal Resolution: Date

Frequency of Collection: Stranding - opportunistic, Ocean observations & Capture - periodic & opportunistic, Nesting - daily

Time of Collection: Nesting - summer field season in the NWHI or fall in the south Pacific region

Types of Data Collected: Turtle strandings, Ocean captured and observed turtles, Nesting turtles

Collection Method: Collection form

Recording Media: Paper

Validation and QC Procedures: Available

QC Standards: Available

Storage Media: Paper Forms, Hard Disk Drive (HDD), External HDD / Access database

Storage Format: Oracle

Backups: Available

Update Schedule: Whenever new data are entered

Data Distribution Method: Email