Loggerhead turtles (Caretta caretta) foraging at drini bay in Northern Albania: Genetic characterisation reveals new haplotypes

YILMAZ C., Turkozan O., Bardakci F., White M., Kararaj E.

Acta Herpetologica, vol.7, no.1, pp.155-162, 2012 (SCI-Expanded) identifier

  • Publication Type: Article / Article
  • Volume: 7 Issue: 1
  • Publication Date: 2012
  • Journal Name: Acta Herpetologica
  • Journal Indexes: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus
  • Page Numbers: pp.155-162
  • Keywords: Albania, Caretta caretta, Foraging ground, Haplotype, Mitochondrial DNA
  • Hakkari University Affiliated: Yes

Abstract

Loggerhead turtles (Caretta caretta) was studied over 3 summers in a nearshore habitat, the Patoku area in the southern part of Driniki Bay, Albania. Tissue samples were collected from 40 loggerhead turtles incidentally captured in stavnike fish-traps (a type of pond-net). A fragment of 859 base-pair mt-DNA d-loop region was amplified from these turtles and compared with previously described haplotypes. Haplotype CC-A2.1 (93%) was the dominant haplotype in the region. Two previously unknown haplotypes, CC-A6.1 and CC-A10.4, were decribed with this study. Furthermore, haplotype CC-A.2.8 was also observed which was previously recorded from Italy. Haplotype and nucleotide diversity were 0.14615 and 0.00017, respectively. © Firenze University Press.