Green turtle satellite tagged for the first time in India

Shyam Balasubramanian Express Buzz 30 Aug 10;

CHENNAI: For the first time in India, a Green Turtle, a large species of sea turtle, was satellite tagged on Sunday. The turtle, Greenie, is expected to give great insight into the feeding and migration patterns of the species.

Sunday’s tagging also marks the third such instance of a sea turtle being tagged on the Chennai coast. Greenie was released into the sea near Marakkanam on Sunday evening by Tamil Nadu’s Chief Wildlife Warden R Sundararaju.

“This is fresh lease of life for Greenie. It was found entangled in a fisherman’s net near Marakkanam. It was very tired from struggling against the net and persistently refused to return to the sea. So we went and brought the turtle to our facility in Neelankarai, where we rehabilitated the turtle,” said Dr Supraja Dharini, founder of the TREE Foundation, a voluntary organisation that works for marine biodiversity conservation along the Chennai coast.

Volunteers held Greenie down, as the satellite tag was attached to its back using waterproof adhesive. “We cannot tell yet if Greenie is male or female because it is not mature yet. But it will grow up to at least four feet in length,” says Saba Natesan, volunteer with TREE Foundation.

The two previous sea turtles which were satellite tagged in Chennai were both Olive Ridleys, of which one stopped transmitting signals. The other Ridley, Arnavi has travelled 6,185 km in the sea since she was released on March 13 this year. Her movements have shed light on the central role that ocean currents play in the movement of sea turtles as well as their feeding patterns.

Greenie’s movement, as is also the case with the previous two Ridleys, will be tracked by six satellites to which the transmitters will send signals every time the turtle surfaces to breathe. To track the movements of Greenie and Arnavi, visit www.seaturtle.org.