From terra incognita to hotspot: the largest South Pacific green turtle nesting population in the forgotten reefs of New Caledonia

Abstract

The green turtle Chelonia mydas is a large marine turtle present in tropical and subtropical seas of the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. It is categorized as Endangered on the IUCN Red List based on the trend of nesting populations at 32 sites, of which only three are in the Pacific Ocean. New Caledonia is a sui generis overseas territory of France in the south-west Pacific Ocean c. 1,210 km east of Australia. The presence of green turtles in New Caledonian waters is known, although the main nesting sites are far from the main island, on remote uninhabited islands. Since 1988 field missions to these remote reefs, namely d'Entrecasteaux, Bellona and Chesterfield, have collected data to quantify the nesting of green turtles in New Caledonia. For the first time we analyse the data collected during these missions. D'Entrecasteaux, Bellona and Chesterfield Reefs host a large nesting colony of green turtles, with the upper credible estimate of nesting activities reaching 150,000 nesting tracks in some years. These numbers exceed the estimated number of green turtle activities in the Pacific. The trend of the number of nesting activities is stable and has the same relationship with the Southern Oscillation Index as observed at Australian nesting sites. Our recommendations for the French authorities are to continue monitoring these populations, collect new demographic parameters and ensure the protection of these remote reefs, which should be considered a national treasure for New Caledonia.

Keywords

• Chelonia mydas
• coral sea
• green turtles
• New Caledonia
• South Pacific
• reef
• trend