In June 2025, we returned to Greece for a field mission on the island of Kefalonia. The objective was to take advantage of the only time of year when adult female turtles get out of the water. It’s nesting season, and usually the marine reptiles dig the nest and lay their eggs at night. At the end of this tiring process, which can last up to two hours, just before the turtle is ready to head back out to the sea, the Octopus team quickly attached the REMORA V2 on two individuals weighing over 35 kg.
This mission took place between Wednesday, June 4th and Wednesday, June 18th, 2025, with a team consisting of four members of the Octopus Foundation, the Foundation’s sailboat based on the neighboring island of Lefkas (for the recovery of REMORAs), and the two REMORA V2 units (units 6 and 7). This mission was also made possible thanks to the collaboration of the Greek team from the NGO Wildlife Sense, which patrols the beaches of southern Kefalonia every night from May to September to protect turtle nests.
Of the six nights of the mission during which the Octopus team was anchored off the nesting beach, two actually allowed the deployment of the REMORA V2. We were able to attach the REMORA on the turtle named “Marilyn” on the night of June 9, and on the turtle named “Knicks” on June 13, 2025.
This mission also aimed to transfer a second monitoring kit for the nests of endangered turtles to Wildlife Sense, enabling them to track egg development during the approximately 55-day maturation period. The Wildlife Sense team will therefore be able to monitor two nests simultaneously in 2026.
To read the results of this mission, click here!
