New colonisers drive the increase of the emerging loggerhead turtle nesting in Western Mediterranean

Abstract The loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta) is sensitive to climate change and is responding by colonising the Western Mediterranean. To understand the rapid nesting increase in recent years in Spain, we sampled 45 hatchlings from 8 nests between 2016 and 2019. We sequenced a mtDNA D‐loop r...

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Main Authors: Astrid Luna-Ortiz, Gisela Marín-Capuz, Elena Abella, José Luis Crespo-Picazo, Fernando Escribano, Guillem Félix, Silvia Giralt, Jesús Tomás, Cinta Pegueroles, Marta Pascual, Carlos Carreras
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Portfolio 2024-01-01
Series:Scientific Reports
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-51664-w
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author Astrid Luna-Ortiz
Gisela Marín-Capuz
Elena Abella
José Luis Crespo-Picazo
Fernando Escribano
Guillem Félix
Silvia Giralt
Jesús Tomás
Cinta Pegueroles
Marta Pascual
Carlos Carreras
author_facet Astrid Luna-Ortiz
Gisela Marín-Capuz
Elena Abella
José Luis Crespo-Picazo
Fernando Escribano
Guillem Félix
Silvia Giralt
Jesús Tomás
Cinta Pegueroles
Marta Pascual
Carlos Carreras
author_sort Astrid Luna-Ortiz
collection DOAJ
description Abstract The loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta) is sensitive to climate change and is responding by colonising the Western Mediterranean. To understand the rapid nesting increase in recent years in Spain, we sampled 45 hatchlings from 8 nests between 2016 and 2019. We sequenced a mtDNA D‐loop region, genotyped 2291 SNPs using 2bRAD and collected data on clutch size, hatching success, and incubation duration. We confirmed that the colonisation has a Mediterranean and Atlantic mixed origin and we detected that these nests were laid by different females, except for two nests within the same season. Our results suggest that the recent increase in nesting is due to an increase in the number of colonising individuals rather than females born in the same area returning to breed. We hypothesize that this increase in the number of colonisers results from successful conservation efforts, feminisation of the populations of origin and earlier sexual maturation. However, the percentage of offspring females produced in Spain suggests that future returning individuals will aid to the settlement of the new population. These results allow defining the current status of this colonisation although future efforts are needed to detect remigrants to confirm the establishment of a resident population.
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spelling doaj.art-eb6c739576ca43008ab723e23b1607d32024-01-21T12:19:28ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222024-01-0114111310.1038/s41598-024-51664-wNew colonisers drive the increase of the emerging loggerhead turtle nesting in Western MediterraneanAstrid Luna-Ortiz0Gisela Marín-Capuz1Elena Abella2José Luis Crespo-Picazo3Fernando Escribano4Guillem Félix5Silvia Giralt6Jesús Tomás7Cinta Pegueroles8Marta Pascual9Carlos Carreras10Department of Genetics, Microbiology and Statistics and IrBio, University of BarcelonaDepartment of Genetics, Microbiology and Statistics and IrBio, University of BarcelonaBETA Technological Center, University of Vic - Central University of CataloniaFundació Oceanogràfic de la Comunitat ValencianaCentro de Recuperación de Fauna Silvestre “El Valle”Consorci per a la Recuperació de la Fauna de les Illes Balears (COFIB), Servei de Protecció d′Espècies. Conselleria Agricultura, Pesca i Medi Natural. Govern de les Illes BalearsFundación para la Conservación y la Recuperación de Animales Marinos (CRAM)Instituto Cavanilles de Biodiversidad y Biología Evolutiva, University of ValenciaDepartment of Genetics, Microbiology and Statistics and IrBio, University of BarcelonaDepartment of Genetics, Microbiology and Statistics and IrBio, University of BarcelonaDepartment of Genetics, Microbiology and Statistics and IrBio, University of BarcelonaAbstract The loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta) is sensitive to climate change and is responding by colonising the Western Mediterranean. To understand the rapid nesting increase in recent years in Spain, we sampled 45 hatchlings from 8 nests between 2016 and 2019. We sequenced a mtDNA D‐loop region, genotyped 2291 SNPs using 2bRAD and collected data on clutch size, hatching success, and incubation duration. We confirmed that the colonisation has a Mediterranean and Atlantic mixed origin and we detected that these nests were laid by different females, except for two nests within the same season. Our results suggest that the recent increase in nesting is due to an increase in the number of colonising individuals rather than females born in the same area returning to breed. We hypothesize that this increase in the number of colonisers results from successful conservation efforts, feminisation of the populations of origin and earlier sexual maturation. However, the percentage of offspring females produced in Spain suggests that future returning individuals will aid to the settlement of the new population. These results allow defining the current status of this colonisation although future efforts are needed to detect remigrants to confirm the establishment of a resident population.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-51664-w
spellingShingle Astrid Luna-Ortiz
Gisela Marín-Capuz
Elena Abella
José Luis Crespo-Picazo
Fernando Escribano
Guillem Félix
Silvia Giralt
Jesús Tomás
Cinta Pegueroles
Marta Pascual
Carlos Carreras
New colonisers drive the increase of the emerging loggerhead turtle nesting in Western Mediterranean
Scientific Reports
title New colonisers drive the increase of the emerging loggerhead turtle nesting in Western Mediterranean
title_full New colonisers drive the increase of the emerging loggerhead turtle nesting in Western Mediterranean
title_fullStr New colonisers drive the increase of the emerging loggerhead turtle nesting in Western Mediterranean
title_full_unstemmed New colonisers drive the increase of the emerging loggerhead turtle nesting in Western Mediterranean
title_short New colonisers drive the increase of the emerging loggerhead turtle nesting in Western Mediterranean
title_sort new colonisers drive the increase of the emerging loggerhead turtle nesting in western mediterranean
url https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-51664-w
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