The Spanish INDICIT partners, University of Las Palmas (ULPGC) and University of Valencia (UVEG) had attended the first Marine Turtle National Meeting conducted in the XV Portuguese-Spanish Herpetology Conference, performed on September 5th in Salamanca, Spain.

During the meeting Dr. Ana Liria Loza presented the conference: “Collaborative network for monitoring debris impact on marine turtles in Spain and Portugal (INDICIT project)”, to explain the important work conducted by INDICIT partners to involve different stakeholders in the project. An important network has been developed in Spain and Portugal to achieve the main goals of the project, such us disseminate standard procedures for sampling the greater amount of marine turtles.

 

 


Title: COLLABORATIVE NETWORK FOR MONITORING DEBRIS IMPACT ON MARINE TURTLES IN SPAIN AND PORTUGAL (INDICIT PROJECT).

Ana Liria-Loza1,3; Ohiana Revuelta2; Patricia Ostiategui-Francia3; María Vale4; Luz Paramino4; Christopher Pham5; Frederic Vandeperre5; Pascual Calabuig-Miranda6; Jorge Orós1; Santiago Mayans7; José Cabot-Neves8; Ana Calero9; Félix Medina-Hidalgo10; Miguel A. Rodríguez11; Anna Casquet-Pérez12; Carolina Fernández-Maldonado13; Eva M. Morón-Manchado14; María José Gens-Abujas15; Fernando Escribano-Cánovas15; Gloria Fernández-Calmuntia16; Guillem Félix-Torrilla16; José Luis Crespo17; Vicente Maro17; Juan J. Castillo-Martín18; Verónica Nuñez-Reyes19; Leyre Ruiz-Sancho20; Marco Santos21; Joao Correira22; Rui Freitas23; Nuno Marques23; Thomas Dellinger24 & Jesús Tomás2

1Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC); 2Universidad de Valencia (UVEG); 3ADS Biodiversidad; 4Fundo Regional de Ciencia e Tecnología (FRCT) Azores; 5 nstituto do Mar, Univesidade das Açores (IMAR/UAc);  6Centro de Recuperación fauna silvestre de Tafira (Cabildo de Gran Canaria); 7Centro de Recuperación de fauna silvestre La Tahonilla (Cabildo de Tenerife); 8Cabildo Insular de Lanzarote; 9Cabildo Insular de Fuerteventura; 10Cabildo Insular de La Palma; 11Cabildo Insular El Hierro; 12Fundació para la conservació i recuperació d’animais marins (CRAM); 13Centro de Gestión del medio marino andaluz (CEGMA); 14Centro de Recuperación fe Fauna marina EQUINAC; 15Centro de Recuperación de fauna marina silvestre del Valle; 16Palma Aquarium; 17Fundación Oceanogràfic; 18CREMA – Aula del Mar, Málaga; 19Centro de Recuperación de especies marinas Cap Blanc, Ibiza; 20Ambar Elkartea, País Vasco; 21Rede de Arrojamentos de Cetáceos dos Açores (RACA) Direção Regional dos Assuntos do Mar (DRAM) Governo dos Açores; 22Flying Sharks, Horta (Açores); 23Museu da Baleia, Madeira; 24Universidad de Madeira (UMA).

e-mail: carettana@gmail.com

 

SUMMARY: INDICIT Project was born in order to determine and monitor the good environmental status (GES) of the European waters based on the Descriptor 10 (Marine debris) of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD). In order to establish the GES at European waters, it is important to determine the current status, monitor spatial and temporal trends and identify the efficacy of the corrective measures implemented. INDICIT Project proposed sea turtles as indicator species of Descriptor 10 for the Southern European waters, due to the high interaction between marine debris and sea turtles. INDICIT project aims to develop several indicators to monitor marine debris through their impact on sea turtles and biota, to be implement in the MSFD.

This project contemplates a consortium of 10 partners from 5 EU countries (France, Italy, Spain, Portugal and Greece) and 2 contractors of the Barcelona Convention (Turkey and Tunisia). The Spanish partners are the University of Valencia (UVEG) and University of las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC); and the Regional Fund for Science and Technology (FRCT) with the collaboration of the Instituto do Mar (IMAR, University of Acores), from Portugal.

To achieve a proper monitoring of the GES, it was crucial the collaboration of main actors involved in the rescue and attendance of marine wildlife, such us stranding networks, local and national authorities or recovery centres. For this reason INDICIT project has developed a Collaborative Network where standard procedures have been shared and fundamental and optional data are being collected properly to identify the real impact of marine debris on sea turtles and biota. The Collaborative Networks developed by Spain and Portugal within the INDICIT project are presented in this work, to show the great effort that has been developed by both countries to improve sea turtle conservation strategies and recognize the great work of all collaborators involved.