News

Berlin, 12 November 2024

Turtle protection through satellite trackers: TUI Care Foundation and conservation organisation ARCHELON release sea turtle in Greece

  • TUI Turtle Aid Greece tracks rehabilitated sea turtle’s movements in the Mediterranean
  • Satellite tracking provides essential data on sea turtle behaviour, supporting marine conservation efforts
  • Triton’s release highlights TUI Care Foundation’s commitment to safeguarding sea turtles and supporting sustainable tourism

Berlin, 12th November 2024. The TUI Care Foundation has released the rescued and rehabilitated loggerhead sea turtle Triton, in partnership with ARCHELON, The Sea Turtle Protection Society of Greece. Triton was released back into the Mediterranean Sea with a satellite transmitter after several months of rehabilitation at ARCHELON's Sea Turtle Rescue Centre. As part of the TUI Turtle Aid programme, the initiative aims to contribute valuable insights into sea turtle behaviour and helps conservation efforts that support the long-term health of sea turtles and their habitats.

Every year, ARCHELON’s Sea Turtle Rescue Centre cares for around 70 injured or ill sea turtles, many of which are affected by trauma resulting from boat collisions or other human activities. Triton, one of their recent patients, was found in 2023 on a Cycladic beach in the Aegean with significant head injuries. After extensive care and rehabilitation at ARCHELON's Sea Turtle Rescue Centre, Triton has now returned to the sea with a new mission: to help inform scientific understanding of sea turtle movements and habitat needs.

Triton is the first rehabilitated sea turtle in Greece to be tracked in real time via cutting-edge satellite telemetry. Telemetry gathers, transmits, and assesses data from distant sources through the use of sensors and various devices, enabling automatic data collection and analysis. ARCHELON’s researchers in the project are now looking forward to following Triton’s journey to better understand how rehabilitated sea turtles adapt behaviorally post-release, as well as to study migration patterns and habitat use.

Eirini Kasimati, ARCHELON's Rescue & Rehabilitation Officer: "We are incredibly excited about this opportunity to learn more about sea turtles and their critical role in marine ecosystems. With the support of the TUI Care Foundation, we can now shed light on the lives of these enigmatic creatures after rehabilitation and work towards ensuring their survival for generations to come."

Alexander Panczuk, Executive Director at the TUI Care Foundation: “The TUI Care Foundation supports the long-term protection of sea turtles by focusing on conservation at critical nesting sites and fostering partnerships that drive local impact. In our partnership with ARCHELON, we’re not only rescuing injured turtles like Triton, but also expanding our understanding of their behaviours through tracking. This partnership also allows us to engage local communities and tourists in conservation efforts, strengthening our commitment to sustainable tourism and the preservation of sea turtles.”

Named by TUI Group colleagues, Triton is inspired by Greek mythology, where Triton served as a messenger of the sea. The turtle’s release offers an opportunity to deepen scientific knowledge while also raising awareness about marine conservation.

Sea turtle tracking is part of the TUI Care Foundation’s TUI Turtle Aid programme, which protects endangered and vulnerable sea turtles, especially around nesting beaches. By working with local NGOs and beachfront tourism businesses, it creates turtle friendly beaches and engages tourists by teaching them about turtles and how to protect them. Since its establishment, the TUI Turtle Aid programme has contributed to the protection of over 2 million sea turtles.

Triton’s progress can be followed on the TUI Care Foundation’s website, where updates on his journey through the Mediterranean will be shared. 

FOLLOW
TRITON!

Turtle1
Your decision – your user experience at tuicarefoundation.com

We use cookies and other technologies that are necessary for services and functions on our website.

In addition, and provided you consent and select "Agree", we and our up to five third-party partners may place cookies on your device, use other technologies and collect and process personal data [e.g. IP address] from you in order to suggest personalized content to you on our website and to carry out measurements and analyses. Data transfer to third countries [e.g. USA] may also be possible, where the EU data protection level may deviate and access by authorities there cannot be ruled out.

You can find more information under "Settings" and decide which cookies and which cookie-based processing of your data you wish to reject or accept. Further information about cookies can be found in the Cookie Notice.

Managing your cookie settings

Use the "Status" control to decide for yourself which cookies we are allowed to set. Save your settings by clicking the "Agree" button.

You can change these settings at any time. You can find further information about the processing of your data in our Privacy Notice.

Cookies Description Status
Necessary Necessary Cookies are required for the app to function and cannot be switched off in your systems. We need necessary Cookies so that the service you request on our app functions properly and so that you can move around our app and use its functions, such as filling out forms. Cookie Notice
Statistics These Cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so that we can measure and improve the performance of our app. They help us answer questions about which pages are most popular, which are least used and how visitors move around the app. If you allow statistical Cookies, we can use this aggregated information to improve our service and the usability of our websites for you. All information collected is aggregated and is therefore anonymous. This information may be transmitted to our partners such as Meta Platforms Ireland Limited, Google Ireland Limited, Pinterest Europe Limited, Microsoft Ireland Operations Limited (Privacy Notice) if you also agree under "Marketing". Cookie Notice