What does it take to recover a species that was once on the brink of collapse?

In this episode of Safe Travels, we travel to San Diego Bay with researchers from NOAA Fisheries' Southwest Fisheries Science Center for an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at one of the world's most inspiring wildlife recovery stories, the remarkable comeback of the green sea turtle.

Join research biologist Dr. Cali Turner Tomaszewicz, biologist Garrett Lemons, lab technician Anna Cahill, and citizen scientist Tracy Tempest as they capture, examine, tag, and release one of San Diego Bay's resident green sea turtles. Along the way, we explore how decades of science, international conservation, and community involvement have helped reverse one of the greatest wildlife declines of the last century.

You'll discover how researchers monitor turtle populations, use genetics and satellite tracking to understand migration, estimate age through bone science, and investigate the mysterious "lost years" of juvenile sea turtles. The episode also examines the new conservation challenges facing recovering populations, including climate change, warming oceans, vessel strikes, marine debris, and shifting sex ratios caused by rising nesting temperatures.

Most importantly, this episode demonstrates that long-term, science-based conservation works, and that every person has a role to play in protecting our oceans.

In This Episode

• Field research with NOAA Fisheries in San Diego Bay
• Capturing and safely handling wild green sea turtles
• Tagging, blood sampling, genetics, and satellite tracking
• How scientists estimate turtle age using skeletal growth rings
• The mystery of the sea turtle "Lost Years"
• Why most Southern California green turtles originate from Mexico
• How citizen scientists contribute to sea turtle conservation
• The impact of climate change on sea turtle populations
• Boat strikes, marine debris, and other modern threats
• Why the recovery of the green sea turtle is one of conservation's greatest success stories
• Simple actions everyone can take to help protect sea turtles

Featured Guests

Dr. Cali Turner Tomaszewicz
Research Biologist
NOAA Fisheries – Southwest Fisheries Science Center

Garrett Lemmons
Biologist
NOAA Fisheries – Marine Turtle Ecology & Assessment Program

Anna Cahill
Lab Technician
Marine Turtle Ecology & Assessment Program

Tracy Tempest
Citizen Scientist & Sea Turtle Conservation Volunteer

Key Topics

• Green Sea Turtles
• Marine Conservation
• NOAA Fisheries
• Sea Turtle Research
• Wildlife Biology
• Ocean Conservation
• Climate Change
• Citizen Science
• Marine Ecology
• National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
• Wildlife Documentary
• Environmental Science

If You Enjoyed This Episode:

Please consider subscribing, leaving a review, and sharing this episode with someone who loves wildlife, conservation, or the ocean. Every listen helps us continue telling the stories of the scientists, rangers, and conservationists working to protect our planet.

Recorded along the banks of the Green River inside Dinosaur National Monument, Joey sits down with Dusty Perkins to explore the science, beauty, and ecological complexity of the Green and Yampa Rivers.

Dusty serves as Program Manager for the National Park Service’s Northern Colorado Plateau Inventory & Monitoring Network and is a lead scientist on the Big Rivers Monitoring Project. In this conversation, he explains how scientists monitor some of the American West’s most iconic river systems, what happens when rivers are dammed and regulated, and why long-term ecological monitoring is critical for the future of these landscapes.

From endangered fish and invasive species to river morphology, sediment flow, snowpack decline, and the emotional experience of rafting through canyon country, this episode offers a rare look at the science shaping our public lands.

In this episode, we explore:

• What the Big Rivers Monitoring Project actually does
• How the Green and Yampa Rivers differ ecologically
• The impact of Flaming Gorge Dam on river systems
• Why sediment and seasonal flooding are essential to river health
• The role of invasive species like tamarisk
• How endangered fish species depend on natural river cycles
• Why long-term monitoring matters in national parks
• The effects of declining snowpack and aridification across the West
• What it’s like conducting science on multi-day rafting expeditions
• The emotional connection scientists develop with these landscapes

Key Takeaways

• The Yampa River remains one of the last relatively free-flowing desert rivers in the American West.
• Dams dramatically alter water temperature, sediment transport, and seasonal flooding patterns.
• Native fish and plant species evolved over thousands of years around natural spring runoff cycles.
• River complexity — including back channels and floodplains — creates biodiversity and ecosystem resilience.
• Long-term monitoring gives park managers the scientific data needed to make informed conservation decisions.

Featured Locations

• Dinosaur National Monument
• Echo Park
• Canyonlands National Park
• Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park
• Green River
• Yampa River

Learn More

Explore the work of the Northern Colorado Plateau Inventory & Monitoring Network through the National Park Service official website

Learn more about Dinosaur National Monument through the National Park Service Dinosaur page

In this episode, I sit down with paleontologist Rebecca Hunt-Foster at Dinosaur National Monument to explore one of the most fascinating fossil landscapes in North America. We discuss the geology that shaped the monument, the incredible dinosaurs that once roamed the region, and what life looked like in this ancient ecosystem roughly 150 million years ago during the Late Jurassic period.

Rebecca also shares insights into her career path in paleontology, her work with the National Park Service, and what it’s like studying fossils and ancient environments in the American West.

The Geology of Dinosaur National Monument

• How the rock layers at Dinosaur National Monument were formed
• Why the Morrison Formation is one of the most important dinosaur-bearing formations in the world
• Ancient rivers, floodplains, and environmental conditions during the Jurassic
• How geologists and paleontologists interpret ancient landscapes from rock and fossil evidence

Dinosaurs of the Jurassic

• The major dinosaur species discovered in the region
• Giant sauropods and massive predators that lived in the ecosystem
• Fossil discoveries that made Dinosaur National Monument famous
• What these animals can tell us about evolution and prehistoric ecosystems

Reconstructing a 150-Million-Year-Old Ecosystem

• What the climate and vegetation looked like during the Late Jurassic
• Ancient waterways and seasonal environments
• Other animals that shared the ecosystem with dinosaurs
• How scientists piece together food webs and habitats from fossil evidence

If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to subscribe, leave a review, and share it with fellow dinosaur and geology enthusiasts.
______________
Follow us on social!
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/safetravelspod
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@safetravelspod
YouTube: youtube.com/@safetravelspod
Safetravelspod.com