Deep-Diving Migrant of the Open Seas
What can dive deeper than a submarine, swims all by way of entire oceans, is roofed in polka-dots, and has a mouth straight out of a horror film? It sounds…
To Monitor Loggerhead Turtles, Scientists Look to Their Eggs
Each morning in the summer of 2022, Karoline Perryman woke before dawn and walked the beach of Little Cumberland Island. Then a sea turtle technician for the Georgia Department of…
TNC Scientist Honored with Naming of New Skink Species
It’s not every day that a young female scientist is honored alongside David Attenborough and E. O. Wilson. But that’s exactly what happened to TNC scientist Suzana Bandeira, who earlier…
Migration Data Helps Protect Leatherbacks Across Oceans
On a warm, humid December night, a female leatherback hauls herself from the waves. She labors up the beach, one heave at a time, to lay her eggs within the…
Sea Turtles Are Under Threat from Small-Scale Fisheries
Small-scale fisheries are an under-recognized source of mortality for sea turtles. A new study from the Solomon Islands finds that free divers harvest more than 11,000 sea turtles each year,…
Finding Reptiles and Amphibians for Fun
The best herping happens at night. Yes, herping. It’s what herpers do. Herpers go crazy for what some may deem creepy. They shuffle along dark trails with cameras in hand…
The Love Stories of Sleepy Lizards
“What’s that on the road?” I wonder out loud, squinting at the dark, oblong shape in the center of the red dirt track. A tree root? A rusted tail-pipe? A…
The Search for America’s Tiniest Turtles
We had heard about some partners in South Carolina that were using camera traps and I think other researchers have used it in Florida. This design is not something new,…
Do Enticing Mites Help Florida Scrub Lizards Attract a Mate?
Set out on a hike at Florida’s Tiger Creek Preserve, and it won’t be long before you see a small brown lizard scuttle through the undergrowth. And while some of…
To Save Pacific Turtles, Focus on Small-Scale Fisheries
Longline fisheries are a well-recognized threat to sea turtles. But a new study finds that local, small-scale fisheries cause significantly greater mortality, harvesting up to 97% of the ~12,000 turtles…