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Research
Opportunities abound at East Tennessee State
University to conduct research,
scholarly work, and artistic production. Creative
activities by the faculty and students
at ETSU result in discoveries
that advance the welfare of humankind
and provide new and exciting cultural
experiences for our community, our region, and the nation.
Students are encouraged to become involved
with faculty in research, scholarship,
and artistic creation. The results of the efforts
of ETSU faculty and students in the area of research speak for themselves. In
2004 ETSU received more than $36,000,000
in external funding for grants
and contracts, a three-fold increase
in six years.
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| Dr. Pamela Plotkin |
The leatherback sea turtle (Dermochelys coriacea) can reach a length of 7 feet, making it the largest turtle in the world. Strong swimmers, they live in the open sea, but females must find a warm, welcoming beach on which to dig a nest and deposit eggs. Costa Rica is home to some of the nesting beaches.
Dr. Pamela Plotkin, East Tennessee State University’s Assistant Vice Provost for Research and Director of Sponsored Programs, lived in Costa Rica while she was a doctoral student and postdoctoral fellow in the 1990s, and she has returned frequently.
Over the years, Plotkin studied leatherbacks and watched the rapid development of nearby beach property. “Five star hotels are being built,” she says, “as well as condominiums, restaurants, and strip malls. The once sleepy town of Tamarindo now resembles a bustling city.”
With such progress came bright lights. Female leatherback turtles dislike such glare, preferring dark, quiet nesting spots. In addition, hatchlings become disoriented and head toward the light of civilization instead of entering the sea.
“Thousands of leatherbacks used to come ashore. Two years ago, there were fewer than 50 females nesting on the beaches,” Plotkin explains, “and if nothing is done, there is a high probability that the leatherback turtle will be extinct in the next few years.”
In an effort to save the species, Plotkin has received a $15,000 grant from The Leatherback Trust for a project to educate local people about the rare creatures on their shores and to convince them to take specific steps to keep the beaches darker and safer for the turtles.
Plotkin has established the project “Amigos de Las Baulas” (Spanish for “Friends of the Leatherback Turtles”) for businesses, community members, and tourists who live near and visit Las Baulas National Park, which contains turtle nesting areas.
Through the project and its Web site at http://www.amigosdelasbaulas.org/, Plotkin hopes to educate people in the area that “They are the stewards of these beaches and the turtles that come ashore to lay their eggs, and they can help the turtles during this brief visit on land.”
Plotkin has recently targeted 60 businesses near the beaches, asking them to display material for their patrons about the leatherback turtles and the need to reduce lights. Her outreach effort asks for assistance in small ways to decrease night-time glare, such as turning off beachfront lighting during nesting season, increasing the use of motion-sensitive security lights, and even something as simple as closing window curtains in the evening.
With hard work, luck, and the help of an educated public, Plotkin hopes to play a part in preventing the extinction of one of nature’s treasures.
For further information, contact Dr. Plotkin at the ETSU Office of Research and Sponsored Programs, (423) 439-6000, or via Plotkin@etsu.edu. |
