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Scientists Solve Mystery Behind Sea Turtle 'Lost Years'

By Kamal Nayan | Update Date: Mar 06, 2014 03:31 PM EST

Young sea turtles going after hatching has always eluded scientists for years. A new data gathered by satellites in orbit is finally providing plausible explanations to sea turtle's "lost years."

In a recently recorded activity, scientists noted that hundreds of loggerhead sea turtles regularly nest in the shores of east coast of Florida and once their eggs hatched, the young turtles start crawling towards the sea. Once the turtles reached the ocean they start swimming and disappear into deaths, also being known as their 'lost years.' 

"Before this study, most of the scientific information about the early life history of sea turtles was inferred through genetics studies, opportunistic sightings offshore, or laboratory-based studies," said University of Central Florida biologist Kate Mansfield in a press release. "With real observations of turtles in their natural environment, we are able to examine and reevaluate existing hypotheses about the turtles' early life history."

Mansfield along with the team used the data gathered by the satellite which enabled them to figure out where the turtles went during the enigmatic period of time. 

"So there is food for the turtles there, and there is concealment, too," said Warren Porter, a zoologist from the University of Wisconsin-Madison who helped the team with conducting the study in the press release. "Once these little loggerheads get through the initial swimming frenzy, the first few hours of their life, they find a place and just sit there. They're very hard to see in the sargassum, as long as they're not moving."

Researchers added the apart from providing the nourishment and concealment, the sargassum also provided the turtles required warmth. 

"They were getting from the turtles' transmitters temperature measurements that were typically 4 to 6 degrees [Celsius] warmer than the sea surface temperatures," added Porter who is also an expert in the inputs and requirements of animal metabolisms.

The findings of the study is published in the Proceedings of the Royal Society. 

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