Annual variation in nesting numbers of marine turtles: the effect of sea surface temperature on re-migration intervals

The assessment of marine turtle populations is complicated by large inter-annual variations in nesting numbers. This variability has been attributed to synchrony in the re-migration intervals (i.e., intervals between successive nesting years) of individuals. It has been hypothesized that this synchrony arises from environmental variations that affect the feeding conditions at sea. This paper presents the first direct test of this hypothesis. The analysis identifies a significant effect of sea surface temperature on the re-migration interval in the largest Atlantic population of green turtles.