Turtle 204 continues to transmit locations very reliably. It has been transmitting for 208 days now and has traveled roughly 8000 km. Given that 208 days represents 4992 hours, 204 has been traveling/swimming at a rate of approximately 1.6 km/hour. Below is a short animation of the water currents and 204's track indicating where 204 is as of March 27, 2024.
2/29/2024
Turtle 203 stopped transmitting on 2/3/24 but 204 continues to transmit. Below is the current location of 204. It appears that 204 is riding around in a small current eddy that has branched off of the main Kuroshio current. These eddys tend to concentrate food items and are know to be areas preferred by loggerheads.
Above is an animation of the travels of #204 in the Eddy shown above from 1/13/24 to 2/29/24.
2/2/2024
Here is an animation of 203's and 204's trajectories after their release in September until February 2, 2024.
12/11/2023
While 204 remains if the "Kii Channel", 203 has moved further offshore out into the Kuroshio current and is currently in waters that are 20+ degrees C. Below is an animation of the tracks of the two loggerheads and tracks of each slowed down a bit.
Loggerheads 203 and 204 current locations and approximate sea surface temperature (SST) are shown above.
Loggerhead turtles 203 (Red) and 204 (blue) trajectories and locations as of 12/6/2023.
Earlier, Tomomi Saito (STRETCH team member) indicated that he thought Turtle 203 would have to move out of the Suo-Nada area of the Seto Inland Sea and it has done just that. The water temperature in Suo-Nada is somewhere between 12 and 13 degrees centrigrade. Turtle 203 has moved out of that area and is now moving into waters that are warmer (around 15 degrees C). Perhaps she will continue to move in a southerly direction into warmer waters.
Turtle 203 has moved out of Suo-Nada and is moving along the coast into warmer waters.
11/20/2023
Tomomi Saito, Professor at Kochi University and STRETCH team member, has intitiated a satellite tagging study of two adult loggerhead turtles (203 & 204) retrieved as bycatch from the Muroto Point net fishery in Japan. The two turtles were transported from Muroto Point to Kochi University where Dr. Saito and his students attached the two Wildlife Computers satellite tags that were graciously donated to the project by the STRETCH Project. The two adult loggerheads were released off of Kochi, Japan on Sept. 1, 2023. Below is a video of their track from 9/1/2023 to 11/13/2023.
Dr. Saido wrote recently: "Both are not in the open ocean where the Kuroshio Current flows, but are located on either side of the inner bay area called the Seto Inland Sea area.
The water temperature in the Seto Inland Sea area will eventually drop. In January, the temperature can drop to 10℃ in Suo-nada (where 203 is) and 15℃ in Kii Channel (where 204 is). I think it will be too cold for them."
The implication is that they will probably move out of their current foraging grounds as the temperature drops.
11/17/2023 Below is a detection and trajectory map of the two loggerheads satellite tagged and released by Dr. Tomomi Saito of Kochi University on Sept. 1, 2023.
The map below gives the daily updated map of turtles 203 and 204.
visit the Usa web site 7/18/2025 A new capture and note from Dr. Tomomi Saito ( Usa Marine Biological Institute ): "We are pleased to report that we relealsed a female loggerhead turtle fitted with a transmitter today from Kochi Beach (33°27'59.2"N 133°29'48.5"E). By the way, while patrolling Kochi Beach this morning, we discovered this female got caught in a wave dissipating block and was unable to lay eggs. We released her today, so we hope she will lay eggs from tomorrow onwards." Turtle specific data: 17/7/2025 discovered at Kochi Beach SCL: 87.8 cm, SCW: 68.5 cm, BM: 84 kg Left hindlimb tag: 56189; right: 56188 PTT Transmitter ID: 286997 PIT Tag ID: 392145000243138 Below are some pictures from the Usa team of the loggerhead: Kochi female loggerhead shortly after capture on Kochi Beach. Kochi female loggerhead after the Spot 6 satellite tag was attached. Headed back to the water after a successful tag attachment. We are hoping to be able to track her m...
AUGUST 8, 2024 POST NESTING LOGGERHEAD SATELLITE TAGGED KOCHI BEACH, JAPAN The post-nesting loggerhead is now meandering around an area that appears to be very favorable for her. Loggerhead turtle 571 has begun to remain in the same vacinity which indicates that she has found an area that provides a bountiful foraging area. 571 has moved a little off shore and may be moving out into the Kuroshio current. Stay turned to see where she goes! Above is an image of loggerhead #571 nesting on Kochi Beach taken by Noah Yamaguchi with a drone mounted IR camera at 0200 hours on August 6,2024. A team from Usa Marine Biological Institute was able to capture her after she finished laying eggs. 571's eggs (110 in number) were retrieved and placed in the protected hatchery on Kochi Beach. If these eggs hatch successfully, they will constitute the fourth cohort of STRETCH turtles scheduled for release in 2026! Post nesting loggerhead turtle #571's locations an...
Food Items available to loggerhead turtles: Loggerhead turtles (Caretta caretta) living near Baja California, particularly the sub-adult and adult individuals, primarily feed on a wide variety of benthic (bottom-dwelling) invertebrates . Their powerful jaws are well-adapted for crushing hard-shelled prey. Here's a breakdown of their typical diet in this region: Crabs: This is a major component of their diet. They consume various species of crabs found on the seafloor. Clams and Bivalves: Loggerheads are known to dig for and crush clams and other bivalves. Snails and Gastropods: Different types of marine snails are also part of their diet. Sea Urchins: These spiny invertebrates are also prey for loggerheads. Conchs: Larger conchs and other large shelled mollusks are consumed. Other Invertebrates: They may also feed on other bottom-dwelling creatures like worms, sea cucumbers, and various crustaceans. Occasional Fish: While not their primary food source, they may oppor...
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