Kayla Sargent
Diving Into Underwater Photography with Nuno ...

Nuno Vasco Rodrigues is a Marine Biologist and researcher at MARE IPLeiria. He was named “Conservation Photographer of the Year” by Ocean Geographic Society in 2021. For the past three years, Nuno has photographed Upwell’s work tagging juvenile loggerhead turtles in the Azores Archipelago in partnership with the COSTA Project and the University of the Azores, which is part of Upwell’s Lost Years Initiative. Nuno took some time to chat with us about the highlights and challenges of documenting sea turtle releases underwater. 

Diving Into Underwater Photography with Nuno Vasco Rodrigues
Kayla Sargent
Researcher Interview: Analyzing Data from ...

With a team of collaborators, we tested new specially-designed prototypes of Lotek microsatellite tags on 160 juvenile sea turtles of four species in the North Atlantic. The data from these tags was published in a new article, "Novel Microsatellite Tags Hold Promise for Illuminating the Lost Years in Four Sea Turtle Species." We sat down with lead-author Tony Candela to talk about this article, his process as lead-author, and the important implications of these findings for the bio-logging community.

Researcher Interview: Analyzing Data from Microsatellite Tags on Juvenile Sea Turtles
Bycatch, Sea Turtle Tracking
Kayla Sargent
Leatherback Saved by Fisher-Researcher ...

When fishermen and researchers collaborate, they create opportunities to amplify efforts for the research and conservation of sea turtles. This past spring, Upwell participated in these efforts by providing a satellite tag for Liam Neythan, a leatherback sea turtle that was saved in Sinaloa, Mexico. Our collaborators, the fishers Edmundo Rafael Garcías Burgos and Mariano García Olivas, as well as Dr. Alan Zavala Norzagaray and the CIIDIR IPN Unidad Sinaloa are the key collaborators and heroes in this story.

Leatherback Saved by Fisher-Researcher Collaboration in Sinaloa
Leatherbacks, Sea Turtle Monitoring, Protecting Endangered Lea
Kayla Sargent
Aerial Surveys Result in One-of-a-Kind Finds

Upwell Research Project Technician Sierra Fullmer shares some of her most exciting sightings while conducting aerial surveys to look for leatherbacks off of the US West Coast.

Aerial Surveys Result in One-of-a-Kind Finds
Leatherbacks
Kayla Sargent
Why the High Seas Treaty Is Important to Sea ...

Most sea turtle species migrate and spend large amounts of their life history in areas of the ocean considered “high seas.” The high seas are the parts of the ocean that are not under the jurisdiction of any nation. In June of 2023, after almost two decades of negotiations, UN Member states adopted the Biodiversity in Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction treaty (also known as the High Seas Treaty) to provide a coherent and holistic framework for protecting the high seas. Earlier this month, Upwell Executive Director Dr. George Shillinger attended the High Seas Treaty symposium to learn more about how its implementation may impact sea turtle populations and to seek opportunities to further the protection of turtles at sea.

Why the High Seas Treaty Is Important to Sea Turtles

The Lost Years

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Trans-Atlantic Collaboration Tracks Turtles into their Lost Years

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Trans-Atlantic Collaboration Tracks Turtles into their Lost Years

Upwell’s efforts to learn more about the lives of juvenile loggerheads in the Atlantic expanded from Florida to the Azores, and now, to South Africa. Through a new collaboration with the Two Oceans Aquarium Foundation, Upwell Executive Director Dr. George Shillinger traveled to Cape Town for the tagging and release of rehabilitated juvenile loggerhead sea turtles. The Two Oceans Aquarium Foundations' Conservation Manager, Talitha Noble, wrote this post to provide some insights on why learning more the movements of young loggerheads at this juncture between two oceans is so important.

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Following Tiny Turtles at Sea Part II: Tag Deployment 

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Following Tiny Turtles at Sea Part II: Tag Deployment 

As you may have read about in our previous blog, Upwell developed prototype micro-satellite that are lighter than a penny to follow juvenile turtles at sea and learn more about the life phase known as the Lost Years. This data helps us to piece together the various routes juvenile turtles of different species and populations follow as they cross ocean basins for the first time. Read part two of our “Following Tiny Turtles at Sea” blog post to learn about how we release tagged turtles and plan to mobilize the data we collect.

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Following Tiny Turtles at Sea: Tag Tech

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Following Tiny Turtles at Sea: Tag Tech

Telemetry, also known as biologging, is when researchers use tags to follow an animal and collect data on its location, physiology, behavior and environment. This kind of data helps researchers create effective conservation strategies; for example identifying areas where an animal forages, breeds or builds its home and then reducing threats in those areas. Learn more about how Upwell is using cutting-edge telemetry tech to learn more about juvenile sea turtles in our latest blog post!

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Ember In The Atlantic Ocean

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Ember In The Atlantic Ocean

Ember the juvenile loggerhead sea turtle was released off the coast of Florida with a microsatellite tag on October 28th, 2022. This blog is the third in a series covering Ember’s rescue, recovery, and oceanic journey.

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Ember the Juvenile Loggerhead Swims out into the Atlantic!

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Ember the Juvenile Loggerhead Swims out into the Atlantic!

Ember the juvenile loggerhead sea turtle was released off the coast of Florida with a microsatellite tag on October 28th, 2022. This blog is the second in a series covering Ember’s rescue, recovery, and oceanic journey.

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Ember the Rescued Baby Loggerhead’s Atlantic Adventures

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Ember the Rescued Baby Loggerhead’s Atlantic Adventures

Ember the juvenile loggerhead sea turtle was released off the coast of Florida in October, 2022. This blog follows Ember’s oceanic journey between October and December using geoposition data from Ember’s micro-satellite tag.

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Update from the field: The little turtle that could

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Update from the field: The little turtle that could

In late November, 2021 Upwell deployed six prototype micro-satellite tags on juvenile loggerheads in the Azores. Despite the estimated 80 day tag lifespan, one of the solar powered tags continues to transmit over 150 days later! The tag is carried by the smallest of the group of loggerheads who was named Peniche.

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Meeting your Heroes in a Virtual World

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Meeting your Heroes in a Virtual World

Princeton student Max Gotts recently attended the virtual 40th Annual International Sea Turtle Symposium (ISTS) for the first time to present his research on nearshore mortality’s role in leatherback hatchling evolution. In 2018, Max worked with Upwell Researcher Nicki Barbour in Costa Rica tracking leatherback hatchlings. Find out more about his research and experience at ISTS.

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Unraveling the Mystery of the “Lost Years” in the Azores

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Unraveling the Mystery of the “Lost Years” in the Azores

Upwell’s Executive Director, Dr. George Shillinger, and Upwell Researcher Dr. Sean Williamson recently traveled to the Azores for the unique opportunity to satellite-tag juvenile loggerheads being rehabilitated at the Aquário Porto Pim before their release into the North Atlantic.

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Novel tracking technology sheds light on leatherback “lost years”

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Novel tracking technology sheds light on leatherback “lost years”

New technologies are finally shedding light on one of the greatest mysteries in sea turtle biology. Using prototype “micro-satellite” tags specifically designed to fit juvenile leatherback turtles, Upwell and Florida Atlantic University researchers released eighteen captive reared juvenile leatherbacks to track their movements off the coast of Florida and shed light on the “lost years” phase of their lives.