By: Malini Pather and Ann Kunz
SAAMBR
As you can see from Herbie’s map, it appears as though she is in a residential area in Richards Bay. Thankfully this is not the case as the accuracy of the satellite reading is influenced by the strength of the signal. Factors such as cloud cover, wind speed and how long Herbie stays on the surface of the water will influence the signal. A normal signal is often as much as 1.3 kilometers out and this would place Herbie, as expected, on the inshore reef just north of the Richards Bay harbour.
During the past week Herbie has been spending time both in and out the Isimangaliso Wetland Park World Heritage Site. It appears as though she is enjoying spending time exploring the reefs between St Lucia and Richards Bay and has not as yet ventured further south than Richards Bay where the reefs start diminishing. It is expected that she will turn around either today or tomorrow and once again begin her journey northwards towards St Lucia. There are numerous resident turtles living on these northern KZN reefs and we have no doubt that Herbie is thriving – how long she will remain in this area is the question we look forward to being answered over the next few weeks as we continue to track her movements.
