M2M technology to the rescue of North Carolina turtles

18th May 2014
M2M technology to the rescue of North Carolina turtles
First generation sensor on turtle eggs. Inset 1: turtle hatchlings 2: Telit He910 module

There are lessons -- and free technology solutions -- for India's turtle hatcheries in Orissa
London,  May 18, 2014– A machine to machine  module from Telit Wireless  is helping Turtle Sense, accurately predict when sea turtles hatch and emerge from their nests. The Hatteras Island, North Carolina, US project   is aimed at  protecting both the threatened and endangered sea turtles and the area’s critical tourism industry.   The technology to  monitor turtle hatching  used the  Telit HE910 modules to communicate sensor data  and was developed by Nerds-Without-Borders an organization that believes thoughtful people, acting without self-interest and working collaborative can solve many of the world’s problems.

Cape Hatteras National Seashore is located off the North Carolina coast. Nesting female sea turtles return to the beaches where they were born to lay their eggs. Months later, tiny turtles struggle out of their shells, out of their nest, and move toward the ocean. Today, when a sea turtle nest is found on the beach, a small enclosure is built around the nest to keep pedestrians and vehicles away. About 50 to 55 days later, the nest closure is expanded, often closing the beach to vehicular traffic. Currently there is no reliable way to predict when the tiny turtles will emerge from their nests near the dune line and parade to the surf. As a result, closures sometimes last more than a month.

Eric Kaplan, founder of the non-profit Hatteras Island Ocean Center and chairman of a technology company, has proposed a solution based on M2M communications technology that will help predict the hatching and emergence events and, in turn, minimize the number of days when large portions of the beach are blocked. First generation technology was tested in 2013 on four nests. This summer about 20 nests will be monitored using second generation technology.

The design is based on Telit’s HE910modules, which are incorporated in Janus plug-in Terminus modems. Cable connections are made to sensors that are buried in the nests: they measure temperature and movement.  The sensors are controlled by a microprocessor, which communicates with a second microprocessor on the modem, which in turn transfers the sensor data to the HE910, ultimately transmitting it to the cloud over the m2mAIR Mobile cellular network.

In order to extend battery life throughout the nesting, incubation and hatching period, transmission timing starts slow and intermittent and increases in frequency once activity is reported“ Through the use of this innovative technology, Cape Hatteras National Seashore is hoping to be able to accurately predict sea turtle hatching and emergence,” said National Park Service wildlife biologist Britta Muiznieks. “Previous studies have been unsuccessful on predicting these events with reliable accuracy.” 

In addition to HE910 HSPA+ modules, Turtle Sense is communicating over the Telit m2mAIR Mobile.

“Telit has a long-standing tradition of collaborating with organizations like Hatteras Island Ocean Center,” said Carlos Perez, EVP Global Sales Telit Wireless Solutions. “Along with products and technical assistance, Telit also looks for ways to create awareness for projects like this innovative, environmentally-conscious solution.”

And why  are we featuring this technology in India? Because we face similar challenges in our major sea cost turtle hatcheries -- the most famous stretch being  the Gahirmatha beach in Orissa. Turtle Sense technology developed by Nerds Without Borders will be available for use, world-wide, royalty-free.