Analysis of the scientific production on sea turtles in Cabo Verde

Abstract

Sea turtles constitute a threatened group of fauna, thus to know caveats in their knowledge it is crucial to lead research efforts. The present study aims to analyse the scientific literature published on marine turtles in Cabo Verde by means of a bibliographic analysis. We analysed the temporal and geographical variation in the publications, the number of authors and nationalities involved, and the extent of study of different research topics by species. The number of publications grew through the analysed time period (1979-2020), as well as the number of authors. The countries with the highest number of publications were Spain followed by Cabo Verde. Research areas of greater investigation effort were “Breeding and reproductive success”, followed by “Conservation and management” and “Population dynamics”. However, there were differences between species and islands. Most of the studies were conducted at Boa Vista, followed by Sal and Maio Islands. The most studied species was Caretta caretta. This analysis contributes to understand trends and caveats in sea turtle knowledge that could help guide future research lines in areas of particular concern.