Friday, November 7, 2008

Nat and Wombat with sat transmitters attached


*Wombat and Wombat

We have now deployed another 2 satellite transmitters on 2 turtles we have named Wombat and Nat (Nat is short for the flatbacks scientific name, Natator depressus). The nesting on the island has shifted to the north so we had to put all the gear on the ATVs and travel up that way to find some eligible candidates. Wombat was a nice clean turtle which provides less of a chance of the transmitter fouling up from barnacles, etc. Nat was a turtle we had met back in early September. We had tagged her in about the second week of our last trip. This means that she is most likely towards the end of her breeding for this season and we may see her migrate back to her feeding grounds soon. Having a history of Nat will provide us with valuable data.

*Nat with transmitter attached:


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