This article was published in Scientific American’s former blog network and reflects the views of the author, not necessarily those of Scientific American
Hatchling sea turtles face daunting odds in surviving to adulthood, and only a few find a way. Just where they go to find food and hide from predators has remained a mystery until earlier this year, when Kate Mansfield, a biologist at the University of Central Florida, came up with a novel way to stick solar-powered radio tags on the tiny reptiles.
This video, from Inside Science TV, provides a nice visual recap of that work:
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More:
Sea Turtles' "Lost Years" Transatlantic Journey Mapped for First Time
March 6, 2014
SA.com story on Kate Mansfield’s work.
How Sea Turtles Navigate [All-Access Subscribers Only]
By Kenneth J. Lohman
January 1992
Whereby researchers have hatchlings in a pool and watch how they swim based on an external magnetic field.
The Navigation of the Green Sea Turtle [All-Access Subscribers Only]
By Archie Carr
May 1965
A classic from one of the giants of sea-turtle research.