Loggerhead Turtle Research
We conduct research on loggerhead turtles, an infrequent visitor to Southern California
Loggerhead Turtle Research
Off the coast of Southern California, loggerhead turtles are present during anomalously warm periods. These loggerheads are part of the North Pacific population, which originates from nesting beaches in Japan. Hatchlings drift/swim across the Pacific Ocean and some will reach the eastern edge of the North Pacific, specifically along the central Pacific coast of the Baja California peninsula, Mexico, where these turtles spend decades until they mature. Loggerheads are also found off southern California, but their presence is more ephemeral. Our researchers have conducted aerial surveys to estimate abundance through line-transect analysis. During September and October 2011 we flew 3650 km and found no turtles. During the same time period in 2015, we flew 5000 km and found more than 200 loggerheads. We estimated over 15,000 loggerheads in the area in 2015. We also deployed satellite transmitters on loggerheads caught off southern California. Reports from the public over the years have enhanced our knowledge of spatial and temporal patterns of loggerhead presence in our waters, and we look forward to studying this species locally, whenever they are present. In August 2018, we flew a third aerial survey off of southern California, but only two loggerheads were spotted over more than 1,000 km of trackline. Although this was not surprising considering the relatively normal offshore water temperatures, we suspect that as mean water temperatures continue to increase in future decades we will see loggerheads become a more regular visitor to our region.