An olive ridley sea turtle scoots up the beach to lay her eggs.

Andres Valencia/Aurora Photos/Media Bakery

STANDARDS

NGSS: Core Idea: ETS1.B

CCSS: Writing: 3

TEKS: Science: 4.10C, 5.9C; ELA: 3.12B, 4.12B, 5.12B, 6.11B

Egg Protectors

A scientist and a makeup artist team up to catch poachers who steal sea turtle eggs

April 2019

By Katie Free

During the late summer and early fall, an awesome spectacle takes place on Nicaragua’s Pacific coast. Thousands of olive ridley sea turtles emerge from the ocean. Slowly, they haul themselves up the beach. Using their flippers like shovels, the turtles dig holes in the sand. They lay their eggs. Then they make their way back down the beach and into the sea.

Hundreds of tourists travel to Nicaragua to see the turtles. But the event also attracts some unwanted visitors. come to the beaches too. They steal the eggs and sell them on the black market.

Scientists with the conservation group Paso Pacifíco are trying to stop the poachers. For the past three years, they have been working on a device called the InvestEGGator. It looks just like a sea turtle egg—with one big difference. It contains a GPS tracker. If poachers steal the decoy, the tracker can send out a signal about where the egg is.

Kim Williams-Guillén worked on the design of the InvestEGGator. She hopes the device helps track down the wildlife criminals. “We may be able to put a big dent in turtle poaching,” she says.

Turtle Threats

Wild Wonders of Europe/Zankl/NaturePL.com

Sea turtle hatchlings weigh just 1 ounce!

Sea turtles are some of the most animals on the planet. Out of the seven sea turtle species, six are at risk of becoming extinct.

From the moment sea turtles are born, they face many threats. Tiny hatchlings must crawl across vast beaches to reach the water. Birds, dogs, and other predators snatch many of them before they get there. In the ocean, turtles can get caught in fishing nets and drown. Many others die from eating plastic trash they mistake for food.

Poachers make life even harder for the turtles. Every year, millions of sea turtle eggs are stolen from nests and sold to restaurants. In some parts of the world, the eggs are considered a delicacy. People pay as much as $300 per egg!

How the Egg Tracker Is Made

How do you catch turtle egg thieves? By building a tracking device that looks like an egg. Here’s how Kim Williams-Guillén and Lauren Wilde put the InvestEGGator together.

MOLDED EGG: Soft plastic is used to mold the egg. Real turtle eggs aren’t hard like chicken eggs.

HIGH-TECH INSIDES: The egg has a batterypowered tracking device hidden inside.

COLOR COATING: The decoy is painted to look like a real turtle egg and covered with waterproof glue.

FAKE OUT: It’s hard to spot the fake egg among real olive ridley turtle eggs.

Think: How might the scientists have tested the decoy before using it in real nests?

How the Egg Tracker Is Made

How do you catch turtle egg thieves? By building a tracking device that looks like an egg. Here’s how Kim Williams-Guillén and Lauren Wilde put the InvestEGGator together.

MOLDED EGG: Soft plastic is used to mold the egg. Real turtle eggs aren’t hard like chicken eggs.

HIGH-TECH INSIDES: The egg has a batterypowered tracking device hidden inside.

COLOR COATING: The decoy is painted to look like a real turtle egg and covered with waterproof glue.

FAKE OUT: It’s hard to spot the fake egg among real olive ridley turtle eggs.

Think: How might the scientists have tested the decoy before using it in real nests?

A Good Egg

Williams-Guillén was inspired to track poachers after watching a TV show. In the show, government agents used a hidden tracking device to catch a criminal. Williams-Guillén realized that she could do the same thing with turtle eggs.

First, she designed the eggshell on her computer. Then she built it with a . Getting the right texture was tricky. Sea turtle eggs have squishier shells than chicken eggs. Williams-Guillén made the eggs out of a soft type of plastic.

To make the decoys look real, Williams-Guillén turned to Lauren Wilde. She’s a makeup artist who works in film and TV. Wilde helped sand and paint the eggs. She also coated the eggs with waterproof glue to protect the hardware inside. The final egg looks a bit like a Ping-Pong ball.

A Sea Turtle's Life

Sea turtles can live to be 100 years old! Here are the steps in a sea turtle’s life cycle.

After baby turtles hatch, they race to the sea and paddle toward the open ocean.

Baby turtles hatch. They race to the sea. Then they paddle toward the open ocean.

Young turtles spend 5 to 20 years in the open ocean. Depending on the species, they eat food such as algae, crabs, and jellyfish.

Young turtles spend 5 to 20 years in the open ocean. They eat food like algae, crabs, and jellyfish, depending on the species.

Once they’ve grown to the size of a dinner plate, sea turtles return to feeding grounds closer to the coast.

Turtles move closer to the coast when they reach the size of a dinner plate. These are their new feeding grounds.

When they’re ready to mate, adults swim to areas near nesting beaches. Females mate every 2 to 3 years.

Adults swim to areas near nesting beaches when it’s time to mate. Females mate every two to three years.

Female sea turtles return to the beach where they were born. They dig nests in the sand and lay their eggs.

Female sea turtles return to the beach where they’re born. They dig nests in the sand. They lay their eggs.

Between mating seasons, adults migrate to feeding grounds.

Adults migrate to feeding grounds between mating seasons.

Think: How do poachers interrupt a sea turtle’s life cycle?

A Sea Turtle's Life

Sea turtles can live to be 100 years old! Here are the steps in a sea turtle’s life cycle.

After baby turtles hatch, they race to the sea and paddle toward the open ocean.

Baby turtles hatch. They race to the sea. Then they paddle toward the open ocean.

Young turtles spend 5 to 20 years in the open ocean. Depending on the species, they eat food such as algae, crabs, and jellyfish.

Young turtles spend 5 to 20 years in the open ocean. They eat food like algae, crabs, and jellyfish, depending on the species.

Once they’ve grown to the size of a dinner plate, sea turtles return to feeding grounds closer to the coast.

Turtles move closer to the coast when they reach the size of a dinner plate. These are their new feeding grounds.

When they’re ready to mate, adults swim to areas near nesting beaches. Females mate every 2 to 3 years.

Adults swim to areas near nesting beaches when it’s time to mate. Females mate every two to three years.

Female sea turtles return to the beach where they were born. They dig nests in the sand and lay their eggs.

Female sea turtles return to the beach where they’re born. They dig nests in the sand. They lay their eggs.

Between mating seasons, adults migrate to feeding grounds.

Adults migrate to feeding grounds between mating seasons.

Think: How do poachers interrupt a sea turtle’s life cycle?

Tracker Testing

But will the InvestEGGator really work? For the past two years, researcher Helen Pheasey has been testing the eggs in Costa Rica. She wants to see if the tracker works, and if the decoys can fool poachers.

Pheasey has a few tricks to slip InvestEGGators into turtle nests. First, she walks along the beach, looking for turtle tracks. Once Pheasey finds a female, she approaches it quietly so she doesn’t scare it. When the turtle is midway through laying its eggs, Pheasey tucks a fake one into the nest. The turtle lays more eggs, hiding the decoy.

So far, the technology seems to work. Pheasey has successfully tracked a few stolen eggs. She hopes her tests help scientists improve the device and, eventually, put a stop to turtle poaching. “If you can identify poachers’ trade routes, you can have police waiting for them,” she says. That could protect sea turtles for generations to come

Away With Water!

Which materials repel moisture?

Observe

Scientists coated the decoy turtle eggs with a type of waterproof glue. That helps keep the hardware inside the eggs dry.

Scientists coated the decoy turtle eggs with waterproof glue. That helps keep the tracker inside the eggs dry.

Ask a Research Question

Which materials are waterproof?

Materials

• newspaper

• four 5 x 7-inch notecards per student

• washable markers

• spray bottle of water

• roll of plastic wrap

• roll of aluminum foil

• a few yards of fabric

• scissors

• tape

• paper and pencil

• newspaper

• four 5 x 7-inch notecards per student

• washable markers

• spray bottle of water

• roll of plastic wrap

• roll of aluminum foil

• a few yards of fabric

• scissors

• tape

• paper and pencil

Procedure

1. Before you begin, cover your table with newspaper. Use the marker to draw a shape on one of the notecards. Then spray water on it and watch what happens. How does the water affect the ink? What happens to the paper? Record your observations.

2. Examine the plastic wrap, foil, and fabric. How does each material look and feel? Make a prediction: Which material or materials will repel water?

3. Design an experiment to test if the materials will protect a marker drawing from water. What will you do first? Then what will you do? Write down the steps you’ll
complete to answer your research question.

4. Evaluate your steps. Then swap your steps with another student’s. Together, discuss how you decided on your experiment designs. How are your experiments similar? How are they different? Revise your steps if needed.

5. Conduct your investigation, and record your observations.

1. Cover your table with newspaper before you begin. Use the marker to draw a shape on one of the notecards. Then spray water on it. Watch what happens. How does the water affect the ink? What happens to the paper? Write down what you notice.

2. Study the plastic wrap, foil, and fabric closely. How does each material look and feel? Make a prediction: Which material or materials won’t soak up water?

3. Design an experiment. It will test whether the materials will protect a marker drawing from water. What will you do first? Then what will you do? Write down the steps you’ll follow to answer your research question.

4. Think about your steps. Then swap your steps with another student’s. Together, discuss how you decided on your experiment designs. How are your experiments similar? How are they different? Revise your steps if needed.

5. Carry out your investigation. Write down what you notice.

Results

Which material or materials kept the drawings dry? How did water affect each material? Present your findings in a data table.

Which material or materials kept the drawings dry? How did water affect each material? Show your findings in a data table.

Conclusions

1. Make a claim about which materials are waterproof. How do your observations support your claim?

2. What do the material or materials that repelled water have in common?

3. Which of the materials you tested would best protect electronics from water? Why?

1. Make a claim about which materials are waterproof. How did the things you noticed during the experiment support your claim?

2. What do the material or materials that don’t soak up water have in common?

3. Which of the materials would best protect electronics from water? Why?

Take it Further

Did your experiment work as you intended? If not, make adjustments and try it again.

Did your experiment work as you planned? If not, make changes. Try it again.

Away With Water!

Which materials repel moisture?

Observe

Scientists coated the decoy turtle eggs with a type of waterproof glue. That helps keep the hardware inside the eggs dry.

Scientists coated the decoy turtle eggs with waterproof glue. That helps keep the tracker inside the eggs dry.

Ask a Research Question

Which materials are waterproof?

Materials

• newspaper

• four 5 x 7-inch notecards per student

• washable markers

• spray bottle of water

• roll of plastic wrap

• roll of aluminum foil

• a few yards of fabric

• scissors

• tape

• paper and pencil

• newspaper

• four 5 x 7-inch notecards per student

• washable markers

• spray bottle of water

• roll of plastic wrap

• roll of aluminum foil

• a few yards of fabric

• scissors

• tape

• paper and pencil

Procedure

2. Examine the plastic wrap, foil, and fabric. How does each material look and feel? Make a prediction: Which material or materials will repel water?

5. Conduct your investigation, and record your observations.

2. Study the plastic wrap, foil, and fabric closely. How does each material look and feel? Make a prediction: Which material or materials won’t soak up water?

5. Carry out your investigation. Write down what you notice.