Olive Ridley Sea Turtle Incubation in Natural Conditions Is Possible on Guatemalan Beaches

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

I am unable to view and download the supplemental files, please submit them in the next version

Lin59-63: I think the reference is missing here.

Lin64:, the report DID not indicate the number of nests, 

Lin73-76: Stand-alone paragraph is a bit abrupt, and the context doesn't flow well

Line78: olive ridley SEA TURTLE

Line80: nests of L. olivacea deposited

Line113-129: inTable of development, did authors obtain developmental stage data by dissecting the eggs? If so, what is the sample size each time?

Lin246:，lin273 in figure 2 and figure3. The temperature symbols in these figures are wrong

Line274: in table3, please add another model: the number of dead embryos~eq. SCL:max T, and evaluate all models again.

Some minor grammatical errors need to be revised

Author Response

Dear Referee,

Please find attached my answers.

Sincerely

Marc Girondot

Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Reviewer 2 Report

The work entitled "Olive ridley sea turtle incubation in natural conditions is possible on Guatemala beaches" which describes the use of innovative statistical tools is a work that describes the conditions that took place in a protected area of Guatemala.

In this regard, my comments focus on the importance of this study that will allow the establishment of new and periodic conditions in the care of nests of Olive ridley sea turtle species.

The first thing that authors must homogenize is the objective with respect to the title and add it to the introduction. It is apparently described in both sections but does not correlate. Modify it.

Although the conditions that the Guatemalan authorities have authorized for more than 30 years are described, it seems that the problem persists when observing the lack of methodology and the consumption of about 80% of the eggs from each existing nest on the beaches of Guatemala.

Although a methodological procedure is described as innovative, it requires at least one paragraph clearly stating what is new.

I suggest that the discussion add a couple of paragraphs that describe and correlate bioethical principles about procedures for moving eggs from their natural position to hatcheries, the use of unnatural shade, and how tides affect those temperature measurements from loggers. In addition, how the control of these conditions would affect the sexual ratio of the species in the medium and long term due to the manipulation of the eggs and their natural incubation conditions.

Line 37. Verify this citation and indicate each one of the citations for each species.

Line 41. What percentage of nesting in Guatemala does that park have compared to other sites in that country?

Line 52. Describe in the discussion section if this percentage of 20% is enough, and if it is not, under what criteria should it be changed?

Line 56. How long does it incubate and does it stay at 29oC in which months of the year?

Line 85. Clearly specify what modern tools refer to.

Line 97. How many nights and why start only at night? Explain

Line 103. What criteria did you use to determine the position (distribution) of the loggers on the beach and in what positions on the beach were the nests found? Did the tide affect those nests or their temperature?

Line 107. What was the average number of eggs per nest studied and the hatching percentage?

Line 192. Only 4 nests are described. Do you think that the N should be higher to corroborate your results? If the answer is no, explain why.

In that same table 1, it is described that nest 3 did not have hatchlings, what conditions were different from the other nests?

Line 305. Describe the type of sand, color, and what may be the origin of said sand.

Line 315. Do you think that with only 4 nests and a correlation with other species of sea turtles, the results are consistent and reproducible with other nests of the species studied in Guatemala?

Line 320. Given this statement, what would be your conclusion regarding the physical conditions of the beach and its correlation with the temperature of the beach studied and any recommendations for beaches with constant tides and beaches with different types of sand, for example, for beaches of volcanic origin?

Line 324. Does it not exist or does it exist for each of the different types of beach depending on its sand and geographical position? Explain.

Lines 340 -345. The conclusions described were not previously demonstrated, for example for juveniles. Explain or restructure.

Author Response

Dear Referee,

Please find enclosed my answers.

Sincerely

Marc Girondot

Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Reviewer 3 Report

This manuscript reports on observations on the successful incubation of natural nests of Olive Ridley sea turtles on beaches in Guatemala, something that had been assumed to be not possible. In addition, the authors attempt to model a thermal reaction norm for embryos of these sea turtles. The observation of successful nesting on beaches in Guatemala is an important observation that could have significant impacts on how this species is managed in Guatemala. I do wonder at the relevance of the modelling exercise the authors conducted.

Major Comments

1) One of my biggest concerns about the manuscript is the modeling efforts with regard to the thermal reaction norm of embryo growth or embryo growth itself. I found the whole section in the methods very difficult to follow and found it hard to figure out what the modelling actually is trying to do. In addition, it is not clear how the model was parameterized (e.g., how do you know the model you used is appropriate to model this question). Since no data was collected on embryo growth in this study I am unclear as to how this exercise was able to provide any information at all that could be trusted.

            In any event, the discussion needs to be very careful to not overstate or make the conclusions sound more definitive than they are (e.g., lines 314-315). This is particularly true when you are dealing with a species of conservation concern.

2) Another issue is the reliance on using other species to determine some of the parameters for the Dynamic analysis of hatching success (e.g., lines 213—214). There needs to be at least a discussion of the drawbacks of doing this. This is especially problematic given that there is often even intraspecific variation in these types of parameters let alone interspecific.

Minor Comments

lines 24-25: I think it would be useful to provide more details on the actual results in the Abstract, there is simply not enough to give a reader an idea of what was found. Similarly, more details are needed on the reaction norm.

lines 52-53: Do you have a citation for this? Also, this seems to contradict the fact that nests on beaches at CONAPAC which apparently can’t be accessed by collectors.

lines 75-76: What are the critical temperatures for sex determination in Olive Ridleys? This information would be useful for the reader to have as they read the paper.

line 93: What is forbidden? This sentence needs some work to clarify it. I assume it means access or egg collection is forbidden but the sentence as written suggests the support and authorization is forbidden.

lines 107: Remains of what?

Table 1: I would add the number of eggs hatched from each nest to the table.

lines 198-199: I’m not sure what this sentence means.

lines 198-216: Is this whole section really needed? It seems like most of this is common sense so it could be greatly reduced I think.

Table 2: I think this might be better as a figure.

Figure 3: What are each of the different panels?

lines 310-311: Do you have a citation for this?

Generally good. 

Author Response

Dear Referee,

Please find enclosed my answers.

Sincerely

Marc Girondot

Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Round 2

Reviewer 1 Report

I suggest editors could accept the paper.

Reviewer 3 Report

The authors have made a good attempt to address my suggestions.

It would be useful to have a thorough edit of the English, especially of the new additions.