Abstract:
Sea turtle tagging enables us to obtain valuable information regarding various aspects
of sea turtle biology. However, there is the problem of tag loss which causes bias in
sea turtle studies. Photographic identification (photo-ID) would help alleviate this
problem from occurring as it utilizes the natural facial markings to identify
individuals. This study was carried out to estimate the extent of tag loss in green
turtles of Chagar Hutang for both intra-seasonal and inter-seasonal, as well as to test
the feasibility of photo-ID technique along-side inconel tagging. For tag loss
assessment, tagging data from the Sea Turtle Research Unit (SEATRU) database was
assessed using the model of Limpus (1992). Field sampling for photo-ID of the sea
turtles was conducted between 13
th
May 2010 and 21
st
June 2010 at Cha gar Hu tang,
Redang Island. The scute patterns were drawn using Adobe Photoshop CS4 and later
compared manually. Assessment of tag loss was done for 951 green turtle individuals.
Intra-seasonal analysis showed higher tag retention for inconel tags compared to
titanium tags which could be attributed to tag design.
