09/10/2026
What a way to begin a semester in the Florida Keys!
During the first two days of Goshen College’s fall Marine Biology Semester, our students had the opportunity to join biologists from the Inwater Research Group (IRG) during permitted in-water sea turtle research around Long Key.
IRG biologists are collaborating with Goshen College to study juvenile and subadult sea turtles around Long Key and the Zane Grey Canal. As part of the project, permitted researchers captured and measured turtles, assessed health, installed flipper and PIT tags, deployed acoustic tags on selected animals, and installed receivers that will record movements of tagged turtles through the area over the coming months.
Working alongside the IRG team gave our students an extraordinary opportunity to see professional sea turtle research in action and to participate in field activities. Students were able to observe research techniques, learn how sea turtles are measured and standardized health assessments are conducted, discuss turtle ecology and conservation directly with working biologists, and contribute to the broader field effort supporting this project.
Experiences like this are exactly what makes a semester at Goshen College’s J.N. Roth Marine Biology Station unique: students arrived in the Florida Keys and, within their first 48 hours, were already learning alongside scientists conducting active conservation research in the waters surrounding their new home.
We are grateful to the Inwater Research Group for welcoming our students into the field and for helping us learn more about the sea turtles using Long Key.
Marine turtle research conducted pursuant to NMFS ESA Permit No. 21169 and FWC MTP 204.
