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The northern coast of Bahia hosts over 50 percent of the total nests monitored along the mainland coast of Brazil (Marcovaldi «fe Laurent 1996; Marcovaldi <fe Chaloupka 2007). The loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta) is the most common species nesting in Bahia, followed by hawksbills {Eretmochelys imbricata) and olive ridleys {Lepidochelys olivácea) (Marcovaldi «fe Chaloupka 2007; Castilhos et al. 2011; Marcovaldi et al. 2011; Santos et al. 2011).
On the nesting grounds, TAMAR (National Marine Turtle Conservation Program in Brazil) is responsible for monitoring all sea turtle nesting activities. The monitoring program consists of marking all nests (Marcovaldi «fe Marcovaldi 1999) and protecting them against human exploitation, animal predation and habitat destruction (Marcovaldi & Chaloupka 2007). The area monitored by the Costa do Sauipe Station consists of 56 km of continuous coastline in the northern part of Bahia, which is divided into an Intensive Study Area (ISA) of 16 km and a Protection Area (PA) of 40 km. In the ISA, collection of data with full coverage is required, so that all the information regarding nesting activities (i.e. incubation parameters, species identification and hatching success) is fully captured (Paes e Lima et al. 2012). The ISA is located in the southern part of the monitored area and it is patrolled by TAMAR staff at least once daily during each nesting season. The PA is patrolled daily by "tartarugueiros" (residents) hired and trained by TAMAR, working under direct supervision of the TAMAR staff (Marcovaldi «fe Marcovaldi 1999).
Natural predation by foxes, crabs, and ants can occur in sea turtle nests. In order to reduce predation by foxes {Cerdocyon thous), all nests are protected with metal wire mesh grids, which are buried...