Description
The Honu Iti project, led by Te mana o te moana with the support of its partners and the Environment Department of French Polynesia, sets out to fill a major gap: the study of juvenile and sub-adult green turtles in the Windward Islands — Tahiti, Moorea and Tetiaroa. Over an initial three years (2025-2028), it rests on a capture-mark-recapture programme across five sites, combining individual identification, biometric measurements, biological sampling, GPS and acoustic tracking, isotope analysis and video observation.
By bringing in Polynesian divers and local volunteers, Honu Iti takes a participatory, collaborative approach, making it possible to better understand the origin, ecology and health of these immature populations and to durably strengthen green turtle conservation strategies in French Polynesia.
Background
The green turtle is the only marine species that nests locally. For some twenty years, sightings of juveniles and sub-adults have been increasing in the Windward Islands, without their origin, health or habitat use being genuinely known. Yet this life stage is critical: without juvenile survival, the adult population cannot sustain itself.
The project answers that gap in knowledge and follows on from more than 20 years of work by Te mana o te moana.
Scientific objectives
For the first time in French Polynesia, the study aims to:
- Establish the demography of young turtles: density, size, age and growth
- Map their habitats and home ranges, and assess how faithful they are to given sites
- Trace their origin, and estimate ages, migrations and growth
- Assess their health and exposure to pollutants, to establish a baseline for Polynesia
- Identify their food resources through genetic, video and isotope analysis
Partners
