Habitat alteration and mortality of adult leatherback turtles in Gabon, Central Africa

Abstract

The Republic of Gabon (Central Africa) hosts the largest nesting aggregation in the world for the leatherback turtle Dermochelys coriacea (Vandelli, 1761) with the Guianas in South America. A research on its reproductive ecology was carried out during three consecutive seasons (2005/2008) at the beach of Kingere in Pongara National Park. This is a wild beach where no previous studies had been undertaken before and one of the main objectives was to determine the main threats to the species at the site. We found that there can be a considerable mortality of adult females caused by the many stranded logs (or lost timber) on the beach. The position of the logs constitutes sometimes a lethal trap for nesting leatherbacks that die from the shock or dehydration without being able to return to the sea. During the course of 2006/2007, local NGO staff performed more than 30 rescue operations allowing trapped females to return alive to the sea. This is certainly one of the major environmental problems on the coast of Gabon not only in terms of habitat alteration but also for the conservation of Dermochelys coriacea.