Quantifying Abundance and Mapping Distribution of Loggerhead Turtles in the Mediterranean Sea Using Aerial Surveys: Implications for Conservation

In the Mediterranean, incidental captures in fishing gear contribute to the high mortality of loggerhead turtles (Caretta caretta). Understanding the effects of bycatch is complex and requires robust knowledge of baseline population parameters such as abundance and density, as well as an understanding of animals' distribution in relation to commercial fishing efforts. Based on data collected during multi-species line transect aerial surveys conducted between 2009 and 2017, we present density and abundance estimates, corrected for availability bias, for a large sector of the central Mediterranean, discuss temporal and spatial patterns and provide Potential Biological Removal (PBR) values for the monitored areas. Sightings data were also used to evaluate the spatial and temporal usage areas. Strong latitudinal and longitudinal gradients in density, abundance and area usage emerged from the analysis, with turtles occurring in higher numbers in the deeper pelagic waters of the Tunisian Plateau, the Ionian Sea and the Gulf of Taranto, irrespective of the season. PBR values derived from this study are likely unsustainable. This paper investigates the implications of commercial fisheries for Mediterranean loggerhead turtles across an area rarely included in sea turtle monitoring and has the potential to be relevant towards informed management and conservation of this species and highlights the necessity of international collaborative efforts in the region.