EUROPE: Identifying key foraging areas of sea turtles can help in protecting their natural habitat. However, collecting feces from a 120 kilogram (about 265 pounds) sea turtle is not easy, especially if it’s in the open sea. Most feces would dissolve rapidly in the sea. Researchers from the University of Queensland in Australian found an ingenious solution.
Owen Coffee, a doctoral student from the University of Queensland, figured turtle swimsuits could help scientists collect feces from sea turtles. These wetsuits would act as ‘harness’ or ‘giant nappies’ for the reptiles.
The customized swimsuits were made from second-hand rash guards from a charity shop. After a series of modifications, the detachable swimsuits were kept in place using Velcro. The customized swimsuit has the removable fecal collector and they fit perfectly.
Dr. David Booth used a smaller version of the turtle suit in his research involving turtle hatchlings early in 2015. Coffee adjusted the original design to suit his research purpose which focuses on sea turtles’ diet.
“Basically, it’s a full-size second hand rash vest adapted to sit on the shell of the turtle with a small opening with the tail and the nappy to attach to collect the feces,” said Coffee.
Coffee has partnered with researcher Carmen da Silva in the study. The tandem dressed up six loggerhead sea turtles with the swimsuit and placed them in sea water tanks. These captured reptiles remained at the University’s Moreton Bay Research Station long enough for them to defecate.
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