Image Analysis of a Sea Turtle Nesting Beach Using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs)

The purpose of the current study is to use UAVS to study sea turtle nesting. Orthomosaics with 1.47-cm resolution were generated over line 40 km long by 80 meters wide of the sites Lepidochelys olivacea nesting grounds on a beach south of Sinaloa, Mexico. The orthomosaics were employed to classify the percentage of vegetation cover, and digital elevation models were also generated to estimate slope, curvature, roughness and aspect; physical variables that are related to nesting sites. The values of the variables corresponding to each of the 1,200 nests recorded in the nesting area were determined through cross-tabulation with a GIS. A generalized linear model was applied, which showed that sites with a northwest orientation and no vegetation were significant and coincided with a nest frequency of 82%. This type of model can enable better understanding of coastal topographic change and significantly improve the success rate of coastal environmental projects of this type, which can contribute to preventing some of the impact on turtle nesting of hotel developments, which are about to begin construction in the study area.