Programme to protect sea turtles suggested

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Baby Green and Hawksbill sea turtles soon to be released into the ocean.

MIRI: All key sea turtle sites should have a volunteer tourism programme to protect its dwindling population.

Curtin Sarawak Research Institute (CSRI) Senior Research Fellow, Dr. Lisa Marie King, who made the call, said Malaysia had four species of sea turtles: Hawksbills, Leatherbacks, Green, and Olive Ridleys.

“Sea turtles have been swimming in the oceans for millions of years, but the species are now considered to be endangered due to poaching activities, beachfront development, and accidental by-catch.

“Many local sea turtle population will become extinct unless egg poaching stops,” she said in a press release.

On the volunteer tourism programme, King said it represented an economical way to ensure sea turtles continue to thrive in Malaysia.

The programme involves international volunteers who pay for the opportunity to monitor turtle nesting activities, prevent poaching, transfer eggs to hatcheries, release new born baby turtles, and conduct community sea turtle education programmes.

“Such programmes benefit the locals during the nesting season. Communities often turn from being egg poachers into sea turtle nest protectors once they realised the benefits of volunteer tourism.”

She added that it was a win-win situation for many as government agencies get assistance to monitor sea turtle nesting activities, communities benefit economically and receive education about sea turtle conservation, and turtle egg poaching is significantly reduced.

King recently visited Satang Besar in Sarawak to observe its sea turtle ecotourism initiative.

During her visit, she observed four large mother sea turtles coming ashore one evening to lay over 400 eggs. The eggs were then collected under the supervision of park rangers and placed in the local hatchery.

She said sea turtles lay lots of eggs for a reason: only a few survive into adulthood to return to the same beach they were born to lay eggs. The vast majority dies shortly after birth.

“Therefore, every little Malaysian sea turtle is precious to our sea turtle population.”

King also travelled with the World Wide Fund for Nature (Malaysia) to Melaka to view a few of the state’s sea turtle nesting sites.

For more information on CSRI, visit its website at www.csri.curtin.edu.my or call 085 443 939. King can be reached at 085 445 039 or by email:[email protected].