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Assessing the Effects of Incubation Temperature on the Cognitive Ability of Hatchling Loggerhead (Caretta caretta) Sea Turtles

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Date Issued:
2020
Abstract/Description:
Under the expected warmer temperatures due to climate change, sea turtle embryos may be subjected to thermal conditions detrimental to nest success and hatchling quality; one trait which may be negatively affected is cognitive ability. In this study, loggerhead sea turtle eggs were acquired from Boca Raton, FL and lab incubated under two female-producing temperatures: an “optimal” temperature of 31°C and a sublethal temperature of 33°C. Cognitive ability of post-hatchlings, assessed via associative learning and reversal was investigated using a y-maze. The sublethal temperature decreased incubation duration, hatch success, hatchling growth rates and produced smaller hatchlings with significantly more scute anomalies. Hot hatchlings performed worse on the reversal, taking longer to train, and thus hint at an effect of incubation temperature on cognitive flexibility in loggerhead turtles. With temperatures rising on beaches in South Florida, this study provides evidence of further potential threats to hatchling quality and potentially even survival.
Title: Assessing the Effects of Incubation Temperature on the Cognitive Ability of Hatchling Loggerhead (Caretta caretta) Sea Turtles.
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Name(s): Serra, Ivana, author
Milton, Sarah, Thesis advisor
Florida Atlantic University, Degree grantor
Department of Biological Sciences
Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
Type of Resource: text
Genre: Electronic Thesis Or Dissertation
Date Created: 2020
Date Issued: 2020
Publisher: Florida Atlantic University
Place of Publication: Boca Raton, Fla.
Physical Form: online resource
Extent: 91 p.
Language(s): English
Abstract/Description: Under the expected warmer temperatures due to climate change, sea turtle embryos may be subjected to thermal conditions detrimental to nest success and hatchling quality; one trait which may be negatively affected is cognitive ability. In this study, loggerhead sea turtle eggs were acquired from Boca Raton, FL and lab incubated under two female-producing temperatures: an “optimal” temperature of 31°C and a sublethal temperature of 33°C. Cognitive ability of post-hatchlings, assessed via associative learning and reversal was investigated using a y-maze. The sublethal temperature decreased incubation duration, hatch success, hatchling growth rates and produced smaller hatchlings with significantly more scute anomalies. Hot hatchlings performed worse on the reversal, taking longer to train, and thus hint at an effect of incubation temperature on cognitive flexibility in loggerhead turtles. With temperatures rising on beaches in South Florida, this study provides evidence of further potential threats to hatchling quality and potentially even survival.
Identifier: FA00013559 (IID)
Degree granted: Thesis (M.S.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2020.
Collection: FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection
Note(s): Includes bibliography.
Subject(s): Loggerhead turtle
Eggs--Incubation
Temperature
Cognition
Held by: Florida Atlantic University Libraries
Sublocation: Digital Library
Persistent Link to This Record: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00013559
Use and Reproduction: Copyright © is held by the author with permission granted to Florida Atlantic University to digitize, archive and distribute this item for non-profit research and educational purposes. Any reuse of this item in excess of fair use or other copyright exemptions requires permission of the copyright holder.
Use and Reproduction: http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Host Institution: FAU
Is Part of Series: Florida Atlantic University Digital Library Collections.