The feeding routine of green sea turtles:they have been returning to the same area of ​​the Mediterranean to feed for 3000 years

The study also allows us to partially predict what will happen in the future and to preserve marine ecosystems

It is not uncommon to think of certain animals as creatures of habit, returning to their birthplace to mate or nest.But not only that.According to a recent study conducted by Willemien de Kock, researcher at the University of Groningen, and published in the journal Pnas of the American National Academy of Sciences, an unexpected aspect of continuity has emerged in the eating habits of green sea turtles, also to protect their natural habitat due to climate change.For approximately 3,000 years, generations of green sea turtles have returned to the same area near the North African coast to feed on the algae there.

The results of the study

The results of the study are the result of the data that emerged from the cross-analysis of turtle bones from different archaeological sites on the Mediterranean coasts.Through a mass spectrometer for the study of collagen it was possible to trace the type of nutrition and "diet" of green turtles over time.By cross-referencing the data on the finds with that relating to the travel routes of the turtles detected by satellites, the authors of the study (started in 2020, ed.) have in fact discovered that generations of green sea turtles have been frequenting the same posidonia meadow along the coasts for 3,000 years of Egypt and western Libya.

What is the point of understanding eating habits

Understanding the historical dietary habits of a species over generations has significant implications.It helps, for example, to fight the so-called «shifting baseline syndrome», a phenomenon whereby the health of the seas and oceans is apparently perceived as healthy, even if they are deteriorating compared to the past.“Going far back in time into the behaviors of an animal population using archaeological data allows us to better see human-induced effects on the environment,” Kock explained.

«This study also allows us to partially predict what will happen in the future.In fact, recent simulations show that, precisely in those areas where the turtles have been for millennia, they run a high risk of disappearing.The impact on the green sea turtle could be high given its loyalty to these places", concluded the researcher.

Cover photo:© Marsa Alam