MTN 136:1-2 Repatriation of a Kemp’s Ridley from the Eastern North Atlantic to the Gulf of Mexico http://www.seaturtle.org/mtn/archives/mtn136/mtn136p1.shtml[2/1/2013 1:59:25 PM] seaturtle.org : MTN : ARCHIVES : INDEX : Sign In Marine Turtle Newsletter 136:1-2, © 2013 Repatriation of a Kemp’s Ridley from the Eastern North Atlantic to the Gulf of Mexico Sheryan P. Epperly 1 , Antonieta Nunes 2 , Henk Zwartepoorte 3 , Lynne Byrd 4 , Meghan Koperski 5 , Lesley Stokes 1 , Marco Bragança 2 , Anton D. Tucker 4 & Christopher R. Sasso 1 1 NOAA, National Marine Fisheries Service, Southeast Fisheries Science Center, Miami, FL 33149 USA (E-mail: sheryan.epperly@noaa.gov ); 2 Zoomarine-Mundo Aquático SA, Albufeira, 8200-864 Portugal; 3 Rotterdam Zoo, 3000AM Rotterdam, The Netherlands; 4 Mote Marine Laboratory and Aquarium, Sarasota, FL 34236 USA; 5Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Tequesta, FL 33469 USA The Kemp’s ridley, Lepidochelys kempii, is an endangered species that nests almost exclusively in the western Gulf of Mexico, primarily in the state of Tamaulipas in Mexico (National Marine Fisheries Service et al . 2011). On 21 November 2008, a Kemp's ridley stranded at West-Schouwen, Domein 1, Gem. Schouwen- Duiveland, in The Netherlands (51.66735°N x 3.70917°E), and was transported to the Rotterdam Zoo. Kemp's ridleys infrequently strand in the eastern North Atlantic on European shores, and often are found dead (Brongersma 1972; Witt et al . 2007). This turtle is noteworthy because it was found alive in northern Europe, rehabilitated successfully, and repatriated to the Gulf of Mexico. The turtle also was outfitted with a satellite transmitter prior to release, allowing us to observe its subsequent movements. The small Kemp's ridley (2.2 kg), named Johnny by the Dutch caregivers, was in poor condition and was thought to be dead when it arrived at Rotterdam Zoo. The turtle's eyes were closed and its whole body was covered with a sandy mucous material. After realizing the turtle was alive, caregivers slowly increased Johnny's body temperature and induced the turtle to accept food. Approximately one week later, the turtle was feeding on dead herrings ( Clupea harengus and Sprattus sprattus), shrimp ( Pandalus borealis ), and squid ( Loligo opalescens ). After 6 to 8 weeks, Johnny was moved to a public area within the zoo, where the turtle became active, started feeding more, and increased in weight. The Rotterdam Zoo arranged to transfer the turtle to Portugal to continue its rehabilitation in a warmer climate. Johnny arrived in Lisbon on 22 July 2009, was received by a team from Oceanário de Lisboa, and was transported the following day to Zoomarine in Albufeira, on Portugal's southern coast. Once there, the turtle's name was expanded to associate Johnny with Portugal's famous voyager: Johnny Vasco da Gama (JV). Upon arrival at Zoomarine, JV was 31.2 cm SCL and 4.7 kg. While at Zoomarine, the turtle was fed a diet comprising four fish species ( Micromesistius poutassou, Clupea harengus, Scomber scombrus , and Trachurus trachurus); this diet was supplemented with clam (Meretrix lyrata), shrimp (Penaeus indicus), and live crab ( Carcinus maenas). Just over a year later, JV was deemed rehabilitated, and in September 2010 the Zoomarine team contacted colleagues in the United States about releasing the turtle in the Western North Atlantic. Considering that JV had reached a size of 45.7 cm SCL and 17.3 kg by 31 July 2010 and wild turtles of that size forage primarily in neritic habitats, it was decided that JV should be released into a neritic environment. However, the oil well responsible for the Deepwater Horizon oil spill had just been capped, and the health of the Gulf of Mexico, a major foraging area for Kemp's ridleys, was in question. With winter on the horizon, and lacking CITES permits and transportation arrangements, the decision was made to overwinter JV at Zoomarine. Meanwhile, work commenced to secure the necessary permits, and arrangements were made with TAP Air Portugal to transport JV to the United States. On 28 November 2011, JV was transported from Albufeira to Lisbon and loaded into a special kennel secured to the airplane's main cabin floor, where