Merope Moonstone

MS student with @ucfturtlelab | low-waste | she/her 🐢🌊🌙

[Merope Moonstone @MeropeMoonstone]

My nesting season is now year-round 😅

[Dr. Erin Seney (she/her) @erin_seney]

Our 1st 2022 nest wasn't the only #UCFTurtleLab excitement yesterday- #UCF MS student @MeropeMoonstone inventoried our LAST 2021 #greenturtle nest! Our late-season nesting research was funded by the #SeaTurtleLicensePlate. THANKS to our hard-working, year-round crew! 📸J Hochella

[Dr. Erin Seney (she/her) @erin_seney]

We managed to avoid CodeMs (🐬) & set the @UCFTurtleLab net in the #IndianRiverLagoon today, but we were foiled by storms. We did capture one little #greenturtle, which is being measured, weighed, sampled, & tagged back on shore prior to release. #fieldwork #itsalwayssomething

[Tiffany Dawson @TiffDtheTurtle]

We didn’t have any luck catching juvenile #seaturtles today (thanks 🐬) but we were 2 for 2 on finding leatherback clutches in the #ArchieCarrNWR! Here are a few of us after a successful trenching session (permitted research MTP-186, 171) @UCFTurtleLab

[Tess DeSerisy @TurtlesAndTess]

⛔️GRAPHIC CONTENT ⛔️
How cool is this?! As a person who works heavily with #deadthings, I thought others might enjoy this cool stranding from last week! This green sea turtle was shot with a stingray spine! Talk about an interesting cause of death! ☠️ 🐢😬

[Tess DeSerisy @TurtlesAndTess]

#sharktwitter I need your help!! What species of #elasmobrach laid this egg and can someone please tell me what I’m seeing?! Is this a baby shark do do do do do do 😭❤️👶🏽🦈⁉️@BadBiologist @SharkEntangle @KjParton @Wobbologist @Sharkhugger @sharkbias @SharkScience @TiffBond5

[Katrina Phillips @SeaKatrina]

What size are oceanic-stage #seaturtles ? Me for scale.

📷credit: @UCFTurtleLab

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[Katrina Phillips @SeaKatrina]

Do you study sea turtles but not in the Gulf of Mexico? There's something for you too!

We also compiled global mtDNA haplotypes (long fragment 🧬) along with the life stages and ocean basins where they've been identified to date. More details in our talk...

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[Katrina Phillips @SeaKatrina]

Oh how I've missed the International Sea Turtle Symposium! Researchers from all over 🌏 discussing 🌊🐢 science.

How do we know where our study 🐢 are from? Join #ISTS40_Virtual Session 18 on Sunday to hear my talk about oceanic-stage sea turtles in the Gulf of Mexico.

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[Merope Moonstone @MeropeMoonstone]

@dontturtmebro @TiffDtheTurtle @UCFTurtleLab @ISTS40_Virtual Just admiring those skills… I learn by watching 😅

[Tiffany Dawson @TiffDtheTurtle]

A @UCFTurtleLab dance break between sessions at @ISTS40_Virtual with @dontturtmebro, @MeropeMoonstone, and (Twitter-less) Gustavo! #ISTS40_Virtual

[Merope Moonstone @MeropeMoonstone]

Can’t believe this exists 😹 thanks for the best gift @mattylarsen30!!

[Merope Moonstone @MeropeMoonstone]

@TurtlesAndTess Proud of how far we’ve come!!

[Merope Moonstone @MeropeMoonstone]

@TBrown_birds Polarized sunglasses, sharpie, rubber bands, multi tool

[Merope Moonstone @MeropeMoonstone]

A weekend full of turtles!!
🎥 releasing juvenile green sea turtles after a full workup, including tagging and sample collection.

All research and handling performed under permit with @UCFTurtleLab

[Tess DeSerisy @TurtlesAndTess]

Anyone an expert on epibionts ⁉️Especially on 🐢? I have a theory there is an epibiont hierarchy, so specific types of epi are more severe or negative. Is this true? Is there value in collecting data on types of epibiota? Especially for strandings? RT for help!

[Merope Moonstone @MeropeMoonstone]

A great February field day 😎

[Dr. Erin Seney (she/her) @erin_seney]

Nesting is winding down, but the @UCFTurtleLab is marking extra nests this fall w/ a Florida #SeaTurtle Grants Program award ($ from #SeaTurtleLicensePlate). The project aims to improve understanding of late-season nest incubation duration, nest viability, & hatchling production.