Rocio Álvarez Varas
Fellow at the Universidad Catolica del Norte, Chile
Other projects
29 Sep 2014
Research and Conservation at the Southernmost Foraging Site for Black Sea Turtles (Chelonia mydas agassizii) in the South Eastern Pacific
The endangered green turtle is a cosmopolitan species whose rookeries are geographically distant from foraging grounds-FGs. The north-central/eastern Pacific genetic lineage (NC/EPGL), also known as “black turtle”, is a young clade with rookeries distributed in Hawaii and along the Eastern Pacific.
In this project, based on whole-genome sequencing from NC/EPGL individuals it is proposed to estimate genetic differentiation between rookeries and their connectivity with FGs to delineate regional management units-MUs, and to examine adaptation signatures associated with each MU. With this data, a baseline for local and regional management strategies for this species in the Pacific Ocean will be provided.