This is an article for the Fijian magazine, Mai Life.
In January a group of twenty-five community representatives were being trained as turtle monitors when by chance, a local fisherman caught a meter long Green turtle and the story of Lady Nakalou began.
The workshop, which was being held in the village of Nakalougata in the northern Vanua Levu province of Macuata, was providing participants with the knowledge and practical skills needed to perform the role of a turtle monitor in their communities. This included ways to identify and differentiate between the species of sea turtles found in Fiji, how to record data on turtles, and how to flipper tag them for future research.
Just as the workshop team were packing up and getting ready to head back to Suva the very same fisherman came running up from the beach with news of another catch. The workshop participants, and most of the village, headed down to see what the fishermen had discovered but few expected to be greeted by a huge Green turtle.
Turtles the size of Lady Nakalou are not often caught in these areas and it is even rarer that scientists have the opportunity to satellite tag them. Satellite tagging provides the best opportunity to collect much needed information on feeding habits, migratory routes and nesting sites, all of which helps contribute to their conservation.
There is still a great deal about the activities and movements of sea turtles that are not well understood and the information provided by satellite transmissions remain the best method of bridging this knowledge gap.
In order for Lady Nakalou to be fitted with a satellite tag she was transported across to Nadi where another turtle conservation workshop was already in progress. This also provided the perfect opportunity to showcase tagging techniques to the regional South Pacific audience that was present.
Six months on from releasing Lady Nakalou on Wailoaloa beach in Nadi, the data she has been transmitting back has been plotted onto a map which shows that she has returned to the area where she was first found in Macuata.
This return so soon after her release successfully supports the theory that turtles feed and nest in specific areas and provides vital confirmation needed for the continuing support of marine protected areas in Fiji – a key goal of the satellite tagging programme.