Objective
Although Madeira's waters are frequented by 5 species of marine turtle, the LIFE project focuses on the loggerhead, Caretta caretta, aiming to help safeguard this species during its juvenile phase, when it migrates through the islands' Exclusive Economic Zone. To achieve this will require accurately identifying the areas where it occurs and developing techniques for constant monitoring of the animals in order to distinguish all threats impinging on them. Furthermore, all sections of the local population are to be informed about these threats, in particular those posed by plastic objects and other forms of litter dumped at sea. The results will help to define special conservation areas for the loggerhead turtle and draw up management proposals for these areas.
There are 8 species of sea turtle in the world and no less than 5 of them occur in Portuguese waters. The most common is the loggerhead turtle Caretta caretta. This species is protected under the Habitats Directive, the Bern and Bonn Conventions and, under Portuguese law, by Madeira's Regional Decree no 17/85.
The loggerhead turtles of the North Atlantic and the Mediterranean Sea head for the high seas as soon as they hatch from the egg. They only return to their place of birth 15 to 30 years later, when they have attained sexual maturity, but will remain here from then on, foraging near the coasts and laying clutches of eggs every 2 to 3 years. During the juvenile phase and the transition period towards sexual maturity, they are confined to the 'North Atlantic Vortex', a circular current system looping around the Sargasso Sea and enveloping Madeira, the Canary Islands, Bermuda and the Azores. The open ocean of the North Atlantic is their nursery.
In spite of what one might expect, the fact of the matter is that the turtles' eggs and the newborn hatchlings are not the most vulnerable phase of the animal's life-cycle. The population is most at risk from decimation of its juveniles, as the death of one juvenile means the loss of hundreds or even thousands of eggs which would otherwise have been laid. Given the significance of Portugal's Atlantic islands as nursery areas for the turtle, the country can make a major contribution towards the preservation of this species.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
This project has not yet been classified with EuroSciVoc.
Be the first one to suggest relevant scientific fields and help us improve our classification service
You need to log in or register to use this function
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Data not available
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Data not available
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Coordinator
9000 Funchal/Madeira
Portugal
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.