Sex Differences and the Heritability of Scute Pattern Abnormalities in the Green Sea Turtle from the Ogasawara Archipelago, Japan

A significant sex difference in scute pattern abnormalities was observed in green sea turtles (Chelonia mydas) from the Ogasawara Archipelago, with adult females exhibiting a higher frequency of non-modal patterns compared to males. The study suggests that warmer incubation temperatures, which favor female production, may also induce these abnormalities due to overlapping developmental periods for sex and scute pattern determination. Additionally, the heritability of scute abnormalities was demonstrated, as females with non-modal patterns produced offspring with similar traits at a higher frequency than those with modal patterns. These findings imply that cooling incubation environments could reduce abnormality rates while preserving natural sex ratios, offering a potential conservation strategy.

Kobayashi, S., Morimoto, Y., Kondo, S., Sato, T., Suganuma, H., Arai, K., & Watanabe, G. (2017). Sex Differences and the Heritability of Scute Pattern Abnormalities in the Green Sea Turtle from the Ogasawara Archipelago, Japan. Zoological Science, 34(4), 281–286. https://doi.org/10.2108/zs160159