ウミガメの増殖技術の開発 夕イマイの資源回復を目指して

摘要

In order to recover the stock of the hawksbill turtle Eretmochelys imbricata by release of hatchery-reared juvenile turtles, we have studied the stock enhancement technology for this endangered species since 1999. We succeeded in obtaining a total of 894 eggs from 2 captive female hawksbill turtles in 2004, and then 1 or 2 female (s) have annually laid eggs since 2006. We have released a total of 209 hatchery-reared juveniles of 0 - 6 years old from 2003 to 2008, and until 2009 recaptured a total of 15 turtles. The 15 recaptured turtles were divided into two groups based on migration patterns. Namely, one group migrated widely and the other group remained around the site of release. Furthermore, it was confirmed that 7 turtles lived for more than 300 days after release. Our results suggest that hatchery-reared individuals are able to adapt to the natural habitat and survive after release, even without condi-tioning to the natural habitat prior to release.