Volume 2, Number 2- October 1996

CONTENTS

Special Focus Issue

The Leatherback Turtle, Dermochelys coriacea

© WWF

Prologue

JOHN L. BEHLER, PETER C.H. PRITCHARD, AND ANDERS G.J. RHODIN. Editorial comment. P. 139-140

Articles

Nesting Populations and Conservation

RALF H. BOULON, JR., PETER H. DUTT0N, AND DONNA L. McDONALD. Leatherback turtles (Dermochelys coriacea) on St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands: fifteen years of conservation. P. 141-147

DONNA L. McDONALD AND PETER H. DUTTON. Use of PIT tags and photoidentification to revise remigration estimates of leatherback turtles(Dermochelys coriacea) nesting in St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands, 1979-1995. P. 148-152

GEORGE R. HUGHES. Nesting of the leatherback turtle (Dermochelys coriacea) in Tongaland, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, 1963-1995. P. 153-158

ALISON J. LESLIE, DAVID N. PENICK, JAMES R. SPOTILA, AND FRANK V. PALADINO. Leatherback turtle, Dermochelys coriacea, nesting and nest success at Tortuguero, Costa Rica, in 1990-1991. P. 159-168

CATHI L. CAMPBELL, CYNTHIA J. LAGUEUX, AND JEANNE A. MORTIMER. Leatherback turtle, Dermochelys coriacea, nesting at Tortuguero, Costa Rica, in 1995. P. 169-172

ANTHONY C. STEYERMARK, KRISTINA WILLIAMS, JAMES R. SPOTILA, FRANK V. PALADINO, DAVID C. ROSTAL, STEPHEN J. MORREALE, MARIA TERESA KOBERG, AND RANDALL ARAUZ. Nesting leatherback turtles at Las Baulas National Park, Costa Rica. P. 173-183

ANNY CHAVES, GUSTAVO SERRANO, GUILLERMO MARIN, EUGENIA ARGUEDAS, ALEJANDRO JIMENEZ, AND JAMES R. SPOTILA. Biology and conservation of leatherback turtles, Dermochelys coriacea, at Playa Lanoosta, Costa Rica. P. 184-189

ALEXIS SUAREZ AND CHRISTOPHER H. STARBIRD. Subsistence hunting of leatherback turtles, Dermochelys coriacea, in the Kai Islands, Indonesia. P. 190-195

ENG-HENG CHAN AND HOCK-CHARK LIEW. Decline of the leatherback population in Terengganu, Malaysia, 1956-1995. P. 196-203

MARC GIRONDOT AND JACQUES FRETEY. Leatherback turtles, Dermochelys coriacea, nesting in French Guiana, 1978-1995. P. 204-208

JAMES R. SPOTILA, ARTHUR E. DUNHAM, ALISON J. LESLIE, ANTHONY C. STEYERMARK, PAMELA T. PLOTKIN, AND FRANK V. PALADINO. Worldwide population decline of Dermochelys coriacea: are leatherback turtles going extinct? P. 209-222

Biology and Morphology

FRANK V. PALADINO, JAMES R. SPOTILA, MICHAEL P. O’CONNOR, AND ROBERT E. GATTEN, JR. Respiratory physiology of adult leatherback turtles (Dermochelys coriacea) while nesting on land. P. 223-229

DAVID C. ROSTAL, FRANK V. PALADINO, RHONDA M. PATRERSON, AND JAMES R. SPOTILA. Reproductive physiology of nesting leatherback turtles (Dermochelys coriacea) at Las Baulas National Park, Costa Rica. P. 230-236

SCOTT A. ECKFRT, HOCK-CHARK LIEW, KAREN L. ECKERT, AND ENG-HENG CHAN. Shallow water diving by leatherback turtles in the South China Sea. P. 237-243

GEORGE R. ZUG AND JAMEs F. PARHAM. Age and growth in leatherback turtles, Dermochelys coriacea (Testudines: Dermochelyidae): a skeletochronological analysis. P. 244-249

JOHANNES A.G. RHODIN, ANDERS G.J. RHODIN, AND JAMES R. SPOTILA. Electron microscopic analysis of vascular cartilage canals in the humeral epiphysis of hatchling leatherback turtles, Dermochelys coriacea. P. 250-260

Systematics and Evolution

LEO DANIEL BRONGERSMA. On the availability of the name Dermochelys coriacea schlegelii (Garman, 1884) as a species or subspecies of the leatherback turtle. P. 261-265

ROGER CONANT WOOD, JONNIE JOHNSON-GOVE, EUGENE S. GAFFNEY, AND KEVIN F. MALEY. Evolution and phylogeny of the leatherback turtles (Dermochelyidae), with descriptions of new fossil taxa. P. 266-286

Translations

Books on Marine Fish, in which True Figures of the Fish are Presented. Book XVI. Chapters 11-V. On Turtles. GUILLAUME RONDELET. [ 1554]. Translated and annotated from Latin by KENNETH F. KITCHELL, JR., arranged and edited by ANDERs G.J. RHODIN. P. 287-302

Commentaries and Reviews

Are leatherbacks really threatened with extinction? PETER C.H. PRITCHARD. P. 303-305

Turtle Poetry

Awakening. KEVIN GRIMES. P. 306

Newsnotes and Announcements

IUCN Northern Indian Ocean Marine Turtle Workshop. P. 307
Training seminar on sea turtles in the Mediterranean. P. 307
Workshop on Marine Turtle Research and Management in Indonesia. P. 307
17th Annual Symposium on Sea Turtle Biology and Conservation. P. 307
Sea turtle online bibliography. P. 308
On-line bibliography of Caretta caretta . P. 309
Bibliography of fibropapillomas in marine turtles 309

Books Received

Turtles of the United States and Canada. CARL H. ERNST, JEFFREY E. LOVICH, AND ROGER W. BARBOUR. P. 310
Biology and Conservation of Sea Turtles. Revised Edition. KAREN A. BJORNDAL (ED.). P. 310
Proceedings – International Congress of Chelonian Conservation. BERNARD DEVAUX (ED.). P. 310
Tortues continentales de Guyane fran&ccedilaise. S&EacuteBASTIEN M&EacuteTRAILLER AND GEORGES LE GRATIET. P. 311
Turtles and Tortoises of India. INDRANEIL DAS. P. 311
Biogeography of the Reptiles of South Asia. INDRANEIL DAS. P. 311
Turtle Islands. Balinese Ritual and the Green Turtle. CHARLEs LINDSAY AND LYALL WATSON. P. 311
Turtles. ANITA BASKIN-SALZBERG AND ALLEN SALZBERG. P. 312
The Eight Great Tortoises. RICHARD CARY PAULL. P. 312

Schildkr&oumlten 1. Chelydridae, Dermatemydidae, Emydidae. MANFRED ROGNER. P. 312

Recent Literature

Recent literature on freshwater turtles and tortoises. P. 313-319

Advertising Section P. 320

Cover Photograph: Adult leatherback turtle (Dermochelys coriacea ) swimming underwater in the Caribbean Sea off St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. This remarkable and specialized marine turtle has undergone an ominous decline in its worldwide population; this issue focuses on its conservation and biology. (Photo by SCOTT A. ECKERT).