The suitability of Albanian coastline to

support viable nesting for loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta)

1Research Center of Flora and Fauna, University of Tirana, Rruga Petro Nini Luarasi, Nd.76-1, No 2, 1010, Tirana, Albania

2Deparment of Biology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Univeristy of Tirana, Bulevardi Zogu I, Tirana 1001, Albania

3Regional Agency of Protected Area of Vlora, Plazhi Vjeter, Vlora, Albania 4099

4Protection and Preservation of Nature Environment in Albania (PPNEA), Rruga Janos Hunyadi, Godina 32, Ap.11 Tirana, 1019

5Mediterranean Association to Save the Sea Turtles (MEDASSET), Licavittou 1c, Athens 106 72, Greece

Abstract

The aim of this study was to assess the suitability of the Albanian coastline to support nesting activity of loggerhead turtle Caretta caretta. The survey was conducted during the summer period (June –September) 2018 & 2019. Data were collected along transect lines (49 sites on 41 beaches in 2018, and 36 sites on 29 beaches in 2019) for elevation, compaction and anthropogenic activity up to a distance of 100m either side of the transect. Complementary data were also collected using a DJI Phantom 4 Pro at 34 of all the sites, flown by automated pilot to create elevation maps generated using DroneDeploy software and toolkit, to calculate suitable elevation areas. Evaluation of the sand temperatures and the potential impact of climate warming, was carried out at selected sites using sand temperature loggers (model: Tinytag, Gemini data loggers), placed at the start of surveying (May) at three beaches during 2018 and seven beaches during 2019 and were removed at the end of the surveying season (September-October).

In total, the suitability of 57 sites across 43 beaches was assessed based on the selected parameters, and ranked as ‘HIGH’ (n = 20), ‘MEDIUM’ (n = 25) or ‘LOW’ (n = 12). Suitable beaches primarily occurred in the most southern and northern regions of Albanian’s coastline. Two emergences of sea turtles were documented in the northern region during the survey period; one non-nesting emergence and one nest (the first official nest in Albania). Based on previous evidence and the data collected during this survey, it indicates that the northern Adriatic region of Albania is more likely to experience sea turtle nesting activity. Recommendations for further research and conservation measures were proposed

Keywords: Caretta caretta, habitat suitability, sporadic nesting, beach, elevation

Introduction

Three of the seven species of sea turtle regularly occur in the Mediterranean region, with all three having been documented in Albanian waters The first official records were in 1960 for Dermochelys coriacea (Zeko & Puzanov, 1960), 1979 for Caretta caretta (Haxhiu, 1979) and 2006 for Chelonia mydas (Haxhiu & Rumano, 2006) Previous research primarily focused on the presence of turtles and habitat use in the marine environment (Haxhiu 1985, 1995; Haxhiu & Rumano 2005; White et al 2008; Sacdanaku & Haxhiu 2012, 2013, 2015) These previous studies confirmed that Albanian waters are important areas for Caretta caretta, as over-wintering grounds for adults and immature turtles and developmental grounds for C caretta (White et al 2011)

Data on the nesting activity of C caretta along the Albanian coastline have been collected since 2002 by the Herpetofauna Albanian Society (HAS) However, before 2017, only a few anecdotal reports exist on nesting events (White et al , 2009; IUCN 2010) In 2017, the first empirical evidence of nesting activity was recorded on a small beach at Kepi Rodonit (north Albania) (Piroli & Haxhiu, 2018) Currently, no established systematic monitoring programme on nesting activity for sea turtles exists in Albania Therefore, this study aims to provide basic information on the condition of Albanian beaches and their suitability to support sea turtle nesting activity, as well as recommendations for monitoring its 427km coastline

Methodology

Desk Review: Identification of potential sections for surveying along Albania’s coastline was conducted using Google Earth & a beach profile database created

Foot Survey: Beaches identified with suitable substrate were surveyed for elevation, compaction and width along a transect Following previous studies (Katselidis et al 2013) for optimal nesting elevation levels, a theodolite was used to define four elevation heights along the transect; sea level (0 m), 0 5m, 1 m and the back of the beach For an approximate distance of up to 100m either side of the transect, the surveyor calculated a visible estimate of the percentage of the beach above 0 5m A compaction meter pushed into the sediment at 3m intervals along the transect, and its maximum depth recorded provided the compaction measurement

Drone Survey: Flown at a height of 30m

50m, images were taken to create maps for analysing elevation at a larger spatial scale in DroneDeploy Evaluation: The overall suitability of coastline for supporting nesting was assessed for the beach parameters, substrate type, elevation and compaction The results of the elevation and compaction parameters were grouped together, and assigned scores to weight their suitability

Sand Temperatures: Sand temperature loggers (model: Tinytag, Gemini data loggers) were placed at three beaches during 2018 and seven beaches during 2019 These loggers were formatted and provided by DEKAMER (Turkey), who developed a protocol for the collection of sand and incubation temperature data in nesting areas

Results & Conclusions

Of the 427km coastline of Albania, approximately 191km of coastline was identified through Google Earth for field-based data collection, comprising of 158 coded beach sectors

In total, 134 beach sectors were visibly checked during the 2018 surveys to determine whether further data collection was required; the remaining 24 beaches were not visited, due to accessibility issues On-site observations excluded 91 beaches as unsuitable, due to substrate type and extremely high levels of anthropogenic activity (tourism) Data were collected at 49 sites along 41 beaches in 2018, and 36 sites along 29 beaches (repeat surveys and additional sites) in 2019 Transects were conducted at all sites, and drone flights were conducted at 34 sites each year (2018 & 2019) sites

In total, the suitability of 57 sites across 43 beaches was assessed based on the selected parameters, and ranked as ‘HIGH’ (n = 20), ‘MEDIUM’ (n = 25) or ‘LOW’ (n = 12) One site was excluded, due to substrata type Suitable beaches primarily occurred in the southern and northern most regions Based on previous evidence and the data collected during this survey, the northern region of Albania is more likely experience sea turtle nesting activity Recommendations for further research and conservation measures are proposed

Acknowledgements

We are grateful to the Director of the National Agency of PA in Albania (Mr Zamir Dedej) and to all PA staff for their assistance and collaboration We also thank the authorities of the Ministry of Tourism and Environment for their assistance to this project Lastly, we express our sincere appreciation to Dr Gail Schofield for her expert advice and support throughout this project