Margaret Lamont, Ph.D.
Biography
EDUCATION
Ph.D., Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, University of Florida, 2002
M.S., Marine Science, California State University, Moss Landing Marine Laboratories, 1995
B.S., The College of New Jersey, 1991
RESEARCH
Meg Lamont is a research biologist focusing on population-level studies of marine turtles in the Gulf of Mexico. She leads several research projects based primarily in the northern Gulf and partners with various agencies including the Department of Defense, US Fish and Wildlife Service and the Florida Department of Transportation. Her work includes investigations of turtle ecology on the nesting beach and within in-water aggregations of primarily loggerhead, green and Kemps ridley turtles.
Science and Products
Fine-Scale Dive Profiles and Activity Patterns of Sea Turtles in the Gulf of Mexico
Researchers are developing acceleration data logger pop-off packages that can be affixed to sea turtles to collect behavioral patterns of diving, surfacing, and general activity levels.
Sea Turtle Movement and Habitat Use in the Northern Gulf of Mexico
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) uses trawling to capture and relocate live sea turtles away from dredging locations to minimize the risk of turtle entrainment. These incidental turtle captures provide a unique opportunity to fill critical data gaps for difficult to capture life-stages of marine turtles.
Distribution and Density of Sea Turtles in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM): Gulf of Mexico Marine Assessment Program for Protected Species (GoMMAPPS)
The over-arching goal of GoMMAPPS is to collect broad-scale survey data for seabirds, marine mammals and sea turtles to determine distribution and abundance in the Gulf of Mexico.
Sea turtle nesting on Eglin Air Force Base property, Cape San Blas, Florida
The Northwestern Atlantic population of loggerhead sea turtles is one of the largest in the world. Genetic studies have divided this population into 5 management units including a genetically distinct group that nests throughout the northern Gulf of Mexico (GoM).
The incubation environment of nests deposited by a genetically distinct group of loggerhead sea turtles in Northwest Florida
The warming climate presents a challenge to conservation of all threatened and endangered species but particularly to those that exhibit temperature-dependent sex determination such as sea turtles. Changes in temperature may result in changes in the sex ratio of the population which can directly affect reproductive rate, abundance and population...
Lamont, Margaret; Johnson, Darren; Carthy, Raymond Migration corridors and threats in the Gulf of Mexico and Florida Straits for loggerhead sea turtles
Along migration corridors, animals can face natural and anthropogenic threats that differ from those in breeding and non-breeding residence areas. Satellite telemetry can aid in describing the timing and location of these migrations. We use this tool with switching state-space modeling and line kernel density estimates to identify migration...
Iverson, Autumn; Benscoter, Allison; Fujisaki, Ikuko; Lamont, Margaret; Hart, Kristen Sea turtle conservation: 10 ways you can help
Five species of sea turtle rely on Florida’s coastal and nearshore habitats for nesting during the summer months and foraging throughout the year (Figure 1). - Loggerhead turtles, named for their large, block-shaped heads with strong jaw muscles for crushing benthic invertebrates, are the most common sea turtle species on Florida’s nesting...
Swindall, Jessica E.; Ober, Holly K.; Lamont, Margaret; Carthy, Raymond R. Sea turtle conservation: Priorities for environmental education efforts
All five species of sea turtle that occur in Florida are in danger of extinction. Many of the reasons these turtles are declining are a result of people’s actions on beaches and in shallow waters. Environmental education is needed to increase awareness and appreciation for sea turtles, and to teach about the potential harmful impacts human...
Swindall, Jessica E.; Ober, Holly K.; Lamont, Margaret; Carthy, Raymond R. Informing sea turtle outreach efforts to maximize effectiveness
Most sea turtle (Cheloniidae) species worldwide are endangered or threatened, with threats causing harm to sea turtles predominantly human‐induced. Thus, prevention of further declines to these imperiled species will require alteration of human behaviors. Regulations, incentives, and environmental education are 3 strategies that could be used to...
Swindall, Jessica E.; Ober, Holly K.; Lamont, Margaret; Carthy, Raymond Loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta) diving changes with productivity, behavioral mode, and sea surface temperature
The relationship between dive behavior and oceanographic conditions is not well understood for marine predators, especially sea turtles. We tagged loggerhead turtles (Caretta caretta) with satellite-linked depth loggers in the Gulf of Mexico, where there is a minimal amount of dive data for this species. We tested for associations between four...
Iverson, Autumn; Fujisaki, Ikuko; Lamont, Margaret; Hart, Kristen West Florida shelf pipeline serves as sea turtle benthic habitat based on in-situ towed camera observations
The use of marine offshore benthic habitats by sea turtles is poorly characterized due to the difficulty of obtaining in situ data. Understanding benthic habitat use that is important to the species’ reproduction, foraging, and migrations is critical for guiding management decisions. A towed camera-based assessment survey system (C-BASS) equipped...
Broadbent, Heather A.; Grasty, Sarah E.; Hardy, Robert F.; Lamont, Margaret M.; Hart, Kristen M.; Lembke, Chad; Brizzolara, Jennifer L.; Murawski, Steven A. Sympatry or syntopy? Investigating drivers of distribution and co‐occurrence for two imperiled sea turtle species in Gulf of Mexico neritic waters
Animals co‐occurring in a region (sympatry) may use the same habitat (syntopy) within that region. A central aim in ecology is determining what factors drive species distributions (i.e., abiotic conditions, dispersal limitations, and/or biotic interactions). Assessing the degree of biotic interactions can be difficult for species with wide ranges...
Hart, Kristen M.; Iverson, Autumn R.; Fujisaki, Ikuko; Lamont, Margaret M.; Bucklin, David N.; Shaver, Donna J. Shared habitat use by juveniles of three sea turtle species
The first step in understanding how sympatric species share habitat is defining spatial boundaries. While home range data for juvenile sea turtles exists, few studies have examined spatial overlap of multiple species in foraging habitat. Using satellite tracking technology, we define home ranges for juveniles of 3 sea turtle species (loggerhead,...
Lamont, Margaret M.; Iverson, Autumn R. Overwintering behavior of juvenile sea turtles at a temperate foraging ground
Most freshwater and terrestrial turtle species that inhabit temperate environments hibernate to survive extreme cold periods. However, for sea turtles, the question of whether these species use hibernation as an overwintering strategy has not been resolved (Ultsch 2006). Felger et al. (1976) suggested that sea turtles bury themselves in...
Lamont, Margaret M.; Seay, David R.; Gault, Kathleen Marine threats overlap key foraging habitat for two imperiled sea turtle species in the Gulf of Mexico
Effective management of human activities affecting listed species requires understanding both threats and animal habitat-use patterns. However, the extent of spatial overlap between high-use foraging areas (where multiple marine species congregate) and anthropogenic threats is not well known. Our modeling approach incorporates data on sea turtle...
Hart, Kristen M.; Iverson, Autumn R.; Fujisaki, Ikuko; Lamont, Margaret M.; Bucklin, David N.; Shaver, Donna J. Temporal shift of sea turtle nest sites in an eroding barrier island beach
Shoreline changes affect functionality of a sandy beach as a wildlife habitat and coastal erosion is among the primary causes of the changes. We examined temporal shifts in locations where loggerheads placed nests in relation to coastal erosion along a barrier island beach in the northern Gulf of Mexico. We first confirmed consistency in long-term...
Fujisaki, Ikuko; Lamont, Margaret M.; Carthy, Raymond R.
Tracking Sea Turtles: New Data-Collection Techniques Provide Fine-Scale Data
There is a growing need by marine scientists and managers for acquiring direct evidence of how various environmental conditions affect the behavior of marine life.