10.14286/v2f1md https://members.oceantrack.org/ipt/resource?r=otnpcsfturksandcaicosacou Ocean Tracking Network Data Centre Ocean Tracking Network Data Manager

Dalhousie University Halifax Nova Scotia B3H 4J1 CA

+1 (902) 494-4101 otndc@dal.ca https://members.oceantrack.org Dan Jewell OTN Data Manager

CA

otndc@dal.ca Yinghuan Niu OTN Data Manager

CA

otndc@dal.ca Mati Gray OTN Data Manager

CA

otndc@dal.ca Angela Dini OTN Data Manager

CA

otndc@dal.ca Dheemanth Kumawat OTN Data Manager

CA

otndc@dal.ca Naomi Tress OTN Data Manager

CA

otndc@dal.ca Jonathan Pye OTN Data Manager

CA

otndc@dal.ca Edward Butler Roots2Reef

TURKS AND CAICOS

ed.butler.fish@gmail.com 0000-0001-6430-4589 principalInvestigator Christian Hempel Roots2Reef

TURKS AND CAICOS

christiandhempel@gmail.com 0009-0004-3430-4173 contentProvider Nichoy Bent Parrot Cay Sustainability Foundation

TURKS AND CAICOS

nichoy.bent@comohotels.com contentProvider Marcus Drymon Mississippi State University

USA

marcus.drymon@msstate.edu contentProvider David Wells Texas A&M University

USA

wellsr@tamug.edu contentProvider Oliver French University of Southampton

UNITED KINGDOM

of1g23@soton.ac.uk contentProvider Jacob Brownscombe Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada

CANADA

jakebrownscombe@gmail.com 0000-0003-2496-8764 contentProvider Oliver Shipley Beneath the Waves

USA

oliver@beneaththewaves.org 0000-0001-5163-3471 contentProvider Austin Gallagher Beneath the Waves

USA

austin@beneaththewaves.org 0000-0003-1515-3440 contentProvider 2026-11-08 eng This is the OBIS extraction of the Ocean Tracking Network and Roots2Reef (R2R) Turks and Caicos Acoustic Telemetry (TCAT) Network, consisting of the release tagging metadata, i.e. the location and date when the tagged animal was released, and summarized detection events of tagged individuals. If readers are interested in the source dataset they may also inquire with the project PIs as listed here or on the OTN web site (https://members.oceantrack.org/project?ccode=TCAT). Abstract:The relationship between people and the ocean in the Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI) has shifted dramatically over the past three decades, with rapid growth in tourism, coastal development, and fishing pressure placing increasing strain on fragile marine ecosystems. These pressures, compounded by climate change, threaten biodiversity and the long-term sustainability of TCI's economy, which is heavily reliant on healthy marine environments. While Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) were established as early as the late 1970s, many suffer from inadequate capacity for long-term monitoring and management and poor user compliance, limiting their utility. Currently, there is opportunity for meaningful conservation impact, due to an availability of compatible research equipment in the territory and heightened political interest locally in evaluating and possibly amending the MPA network. To target this opportunity, a network of 20-35 acoustic receivers will be installed across strategic areas spanning four existing MPAs, two proposed area extensions, and adjacent unprotected waters. The project will investigate species residency, habitat use, and area connectivity for approximately 90 animals across at least three ecologically and/or economically important target species (using surgically implanted Innovasea V13 and V16 transmitters). Mutton snapper (Lutjanus analis) and whitespotted eagle rays (Aetobatus narinari) are identified as priority species in the initial phase, with southern stingrays (Hypanus americanus) selected as a third focal species. Findings will directly inform marine spatial planning, strengthen local management and monitoring capacity, and contribute to the establishment of the Turks and Caicos Acoustic Telemetry (TCAT) Network as a long-term shared resource for environmental monitoring and species conservation. ACOUSTIC TAGS n/a EARTH SCIENCE > BIOLOGICAL CLASSIFICATION > ANIMALS/VERTEBRATES > FISH Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Occurrence GBIF Dataset Type Vocabulary: http://rs.gbif.org/vocabulary/gbif/dataset_type.xml Samplingevent GBIF Dataset Type Vocabulary: http://rs.gbif.org/vocabulary/gbif/dataset_type_2015-07-10.xml Observation GBIF Dataset Subtype Vocabulary: http://rs.gbif.org/vocabulary/gbif/dataset_subtype.xml Access Constraints: none Use Constraints: Acknowledge the use of specific records from contributing databases in the form appearing in the 'Citation' field thereof (if any); and acknowledge the use of the OBIS facility. For information purposes, email to info@obis.org the full citation of any publication made (printed or electronic) that cites OBIS or any constituent part. Recognize the limitations of data in OBIS. See https://manual.obis.org/policy.html#disclaimer for more details This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) 4.0 License. https://members.oceantrack.org/project?ccode=TCAT PROVIDENCIALES -72.64633 -71.745601 22.086117 21.550654 2025-09-01 2025-09-01 Species included below are tagged by this project and have left any embargo. Other individuals or species may later be appended to this dataset. species Aetobatus narinari whitespotted eagle ray species Albula vulpes Atlantic bonefish species Hypanus americanus southern stingray species Lutjanus analis mutton snapper species Lutjanus griseus gray snapper These data are for display on the OBIS portal and associated mapping programs and for download to personal computers for ad-hoc end-user analysis. unknown Ocean Tracking Network Data Centre Ocean Tracking Network Data Manager

Dalhousie University Halifax Nova Scotia B3H 4J1 CA

+1 (902) 494-4101 otndc@dal.ca http://members.oceantrack.org This resource was created by the Ocean Tracking Network Data Centre as a summarized representation of animal presence determined by electronic tagging efforts. Darwin Core (DwC) records were extracted from the OTN database and filtered and summarized according to international agreed-upon standards. Program started 2025-09-01 and ran until None Acoustic tags released. OTN species names are verified using the World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS). If species names on new data cannot be verified against (a) known valid names in OTN, and/or (b) WoRMs the Data Provider will be notified so they can check they are correct. Names that cannot be placed after checking with WoRMS are, where possible, placed on the basis of other authoritative sources, such as the Fishbase or ITIS; and once completely verified a request will be sent to WoRMS for addition of the verified species name. http://members.oceantrack.org/data/discovery/byspecies Edward Butler 0000-0001-6430-4589 principalInvestigator The relationship between people and the ocean in the Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI) has shifted dramatically over the past three decades, with rapid growth in tourism, coastal development, and fishing pressure placing increasing strain on fragile marine ecosystems. These pressures, compounded by climate change, threaten biodiversity and the long-term sustainability of TCI's economy, which is heavily reliant on healthy marine environments. While Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) were established as early as the late 1970s, many suffer from inadequate capacity for long-term monitoring and management and poor user compliance, limiting their utility. Currently, there is opportunity for meaningful conservation impact, due to an availability of compatible research equipment in the territory and heightened political interest locally in evaluating and possibly amending the MPA network. To target this opportunity, a network of 20-35 acoustic receivers will be installed across strategic areas spanning four existing MPAs, two proposed area extensions, and adjacent unprotected waters. The project will investigate species residency, habitat use, and area connectivity for approximately 90 animals across at least three ecologically and/or economically important target species (using surgically implanted Innovasea V13 and V16 transmitters). Mutton snapper (Lutjanus analis) and whitespotted eagle rays (Aetobatus narinari) are identified as priority species in the initial phase, with southern stingrays (Hypanus americanus) selected as a third focal species. Findings will directly inform marine spatial planning, strengthen local management and monitoring capacity, and contribute to the establishment of the Turks and Caicos Acoustic Telemetry (TCAT) Network as a long-term shared resource for environmental monitoring and species conservation. No funding information for this project was provided to OTN for publication. OTN is a research and technology development initiative headquartered at Dalhousie University, in Halifax, Nova Scotia. OTN is funded by the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) and is grateful to have once received funding from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) and the Social Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (SSHRC). No study area description for this project was provided to OTN for publication. A wide range of aquatic species are tagged with small electronic transmitters, surgically implanted or attached externally, which can operate for up to 20 years. Acoustic receivers arranged in line on the ocean floor as well as attached to buoys, gliders and large animals (e.g. grey seals) pick up the coded acoustic signals from these tags identifying each tagged sea creature that passes within half a kilometer of the receiver. Data collected by these listening stations are subsequently uploaded to one of many compatible data nodes, adding to the reach of an intercompatible network of networks designed and maintained by the Ocean Tracking Network, producing current and reliable records for every part of the globe. Certain classes of electronic tags and listening equipment (receivers) may also be outfitted or co-located with sensors to measure the ocean's temperature, depth, salinity, currents, chemistry, and other properties. 2026-05-20T00:00:00.000+00:00 dataset Butler, E.C., Hempel, C.D., Drymon, J.M., Wells, R.J.D. 2025. Navigating Conservation in the Turks and Caicos Islands: establishing the Turks and Caicos Acoustic Telemetry (TCAT) Network to inform marine spatial management and species conservation. Accessed via the Ocean Tracking Network OBIS IPT on INSERT DATE Butler, E.C., Hempel, C.D., Drymon, J.M., Wells, R.J.D. 2025. Navigating Conservation in the Turks and Caicos Islands: establishing the Turks and Caicos Acoustic Telemetry (TCAT) Network to inform marine spatial management and species conservation In: Ocean Tracking Network Data Centre, Halifax Canada / otndc@dal.ca Retrieved: 2026-05-20 from db.load.oceantrack.org Turks and Caicos Acoustic Telemetry (TCAT) Network ASCII HTM https://members.oceantrack.org/project?ccode=TCAT https://members.oceantrack.org/@@site-logo/logo.png https://members.oceantrack.org/ipt/resource?id=otnpcsfturksandcaicosacou/v2.xml