Green turtles nest in the Galápagos Islands all the year round but the busiest period is between December and April. Fascinated by these aquatic reptiles and keen to learn more about their behaviour in Galápagos, Patricia Zárate a marine biologist of the Charles Darwin Research Station spent a week on Las Salinas Beach, Baltra Island in March this year. In the middle of the night Patricia and her assistant US volunteer Bruce Christman waited for the nesting females to make their cumbersome struggle up the beach, to lay their eggs or at times just make a false trail. Before the turtles could return to the sea the biologists would quickly move to catch the animals to take measurements and samples. A last and important step was to attach identification tags to monitor whether the same females will return next year.

Patricia has initiated a new long-term study, "Monitoring green turtles on the nesting beaches of Galápagos". Previous studies in the 70s and 80s revealed that the nesting colony in Galápagos was one of the largest in the Eastern Pacific. Patricia's research will continue the earlier work, compiling new data about the nesting habits of green turtles and quantifying the impacts that predators have on the reproduction of the species. The study will serve to develop future plans for the conservation and protection of the species.

As a result of Patricia's work we hope to learn how many females nest in Galápagos each year, and the number of hatchlings. Another interesting outcome of the study will be the genetic identification of the green turtle population of Galápagos. Previous research indicated that introduced wild pigs and native scarab beetles are preying on the eggs. Through this long-term study it will be possible to evaluate their impact and also to plan methods to protect the turtles' nests.

For further information on the work of the Darwin Research Foundation visit: http://www.darwinfoundation.org/

The definitive guide to the Birds, Mammals and Reptiles of the Galápagos Islands is available from WILDGuides. For each copy sold, a donation is made to the Darwin Foundation. Click on the front cover to order a copy.