The ever-expanding network of satellites orbiting the globe for tracking the movements of animals is among the most useful tools in wildlife migration studies. A small transponder is attached to the turtle's carapace and beams a signal to a polar-orbiting satellite. The signal is processed aboard the satellite to determine the position of the signal origin, and is then relayed to a ground station, which emails the project team with the current position of the turtle.

In this way, the movements of the turtle can be determined over a one-year period, presenting us with invaluable data on offshore migration routes and the path taken to development habitats in the comfort of our island resort. This has most often been carried out using adult turtles as they are able to carry the large transponder, but with developments in technology we are confident our one-and-a-half year old turtles will be ready for the challenge. A minor setback: each of these wonderful toys costs about US$12,000 to purchase and operate for one year.

At Banyan Tree Maldives and Angsana Ihuru the last batch of turtles in our care was released into the Indian Ocean on 13th December 2002. Fortunately, we managed to fund the satellite tracking of two turtles for a 6-month period. This will enable us to conduct valuable research into the migration patterns of the Green Sea Turtle in the Maldives, a field of study that has so far not received the attention it deserves. Our research findings will be shared with the Ministry of Fisheries and Agriculture in the Maldives.