Turtle crisis looms for Great Barrier Reef



Hawksbill turtles are threatened from fishing activities and international trade.


Queensland, Australia: WWF has received numerous reports from aboriginal groups on the north-eastern coast of Australia of large numbers of sick, starving and dead turtles washing up on beaches. The reports come following the loss of sea grasses after Cyclone Yasi and floods hit the area back in February.


The increase in turtle deaths for April may be more than five times higher this year compared to the same time last year.


“If these numbers are accurate, then this is a shocking development for the Great Barrier Reef​” said WWF’s Conservation on Country Manager Cliff Cobbo. “We urgently need clarification from the Queensland Government on how many turtles are being found dead along the Great Barrier Reef coast”.


Turtle hospitals in Townsville, Queensland are being overwhelmed with sick and starving animals and do not have the resources to handle the number of turtles expected to need emergency care over the next 18 months.


Some local aboriginal groups have been so concerned by what they are seeing they plan to suspend issuing hunting permits within their saltwater country.


CEO of the Girringun Aboriginal Corporation, Phil Rist, said large numbers of dead turtles and dugongs had been found in recent weeks and that strandings are occurring on a weekly basis.


Numerous threats


WWF believes recent extreme weather events like Cyclone Yasi and the Queensland floods, together with threats such as entanglement in fishing nets, water pollution and large-scale coastal developments have led to this increase in deaths.


“In the past turtles have been healthy enough to deal with extreme weather events, but the combined pressure of more fishing nets, declining water quality and associated disease, on top of the loss of critical habitats as a result of large coastal developments have all undermined their chances of survival,” Cobbo said.


WWF is calling on both sides of Queensland politics to commit to building greater resilience in populations of threatened marine species on the Great Barrier Reef through reforming net fisheries, reducing land-based pollution on the reef, and better managing large coastal developments.


WWF’s Global Marine Turtle Programme


Six of the seven species of marine turtle are classified as endangered or critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources​ (IUCN).


WWF has been working on marine turtle conservation for nearly 50 years and has provided a Global Marine Turtle Strategy to outline WWF priorities for marine turtle conservation.


The benefits of saving marine turtles go far beyond simply protecting these remarkable species.

Conservation efforts will make fisheries more sustainable and provide benefits to small communities and with marine turtles becoming increasingly important as an ecotourism attraction, a live turtle is worth more than a dead turtle.


Green sea turtle (Chelonia mydas)




Source:
WWF. (2011, August 10). Turtle crisis looms for Great Barrier Reef. Retrieved August 10, 2011, from WWF Global: http://wwf.panda.org/?201274/Turtle-crisis-looms-for-Great-Barrier-Reef

Ban turtle eggs trade in Malaysia WWF - Channel NewsAsia



A handler holds up a green sea turtle at the Turtle and Marine Ecosystem Centre in Rantau Abang in eastern Terengganu state. (AFP file photo)



KUALA LUMPUR : Conservationists Wednesday urged Malaysia to impose a national ban on the trade and consumption of turtle eggs to ensure the survival of the marine creatures.

Turtles once arrived in their thousands to lay eggs on Malaysian beaches but are now increasingly rare due to poaching and coastal development.

"WWF-Malaysia continues its call for a comprehensive ban on the consumption and trade of turtle eggs of all marine turtle species to ensure the survival of these majestic creatures," Environmental group WWF-Malaysia said in statement.

With no national ban on eating turtle eggs, they are sold openly in eastern Terengganu state where only the sale of leatherback turtle eggs is not permitted, the group said.

Turtle eggs are are also available elsewhere in the country.

WWF said contrary to popular belief most people consider the eggs a "delicacy" and eat them for pleasure, not as a source of protein or for their reputed medicinal or aphrodisiac effects.

- AFP/ir


Source:

Ban turtle eggs trade in Malaysia: WWF. (2011, August 3). Retrieved August 3, 2011, from Channel NewsAsia: http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/lifestylenews/view/1144785/1/.html

 





Article originally published by: 

Wednesday July 20, 2011

The saviour of the terrapins

By FARIK ZOLKEPLI
farik@thestar.com.my

Family passion: Arbi and his son Ashraf checking the turtle eggs at the hatchery in Kuala Baharu Selatan.

SETIU: It is a wild, wild life for forest ranger Arbi Ngah whose “resume” includes being chased by a wild boar and wrestling with monitor lizards.

“I was once pursued by a wild boar whose snout reached my waist. I had to climb a coconut tree to avoid being gored but I could only climb a few metres as a fellow ranger had already climbed the tree before me,” he said.

Despite such a “macho” job, 41-year-old Arbi has a soft spot for the critically endangered painted terrapins.

Arbi patrols Kuala Baharu Selatan, a sanctuary for terrapins. He safeguards the terrapins' eggs from poachers and wild animals.

*Full story in The Star today

Source: http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=%2F2011%2F7%2F20%2Fnation%2F20110720065042&sec=nation

Turtle volunteering on Perhentian Island, Malaysia

Dear readers!

The following is a website that engages holiday makers with turtle conservation work as well. Why this is being shared is because WWF-Malaysia @ Kampung Mangkuk is being mentioned as well as the local women's group which we know is the PEWANIS. These two groups of people worked very closely with Project Orion III during our two weeks at Terengganu and are still fondly missed :D

Website: http://www.responsibletravel.com/holiday/5589/turtle-volunteering-on-perhentian-island-malaysia
from 'responsibletravel.com'

This is one organization who provides volunteering trips for people like you and I. The following paragraph is taken from one of their webpage:

"We provide training and education to locals on conservation, ecotourism and English skills, enabling them to develop useful skills and encourage them to protect their environment. We work in joint partnership with the local government and community to build long-term relationships based on trust and mutual respect. Our projects are long-term, helping to secure a sustainable livelihood, create local pride and avoid dependency in the local community. We contribute volunteer costs to local conservation projects, and raise money for them. Our local presence and cultural understanding allow us to create volunteer cultural awareness amongst volunteers and allows us to be welcomed into the host community."


May this be something new for some of us to learn or use as reference. Please feel free to leave comments or questions in our chabox if you would like to and we will get back to you.


Have a pleasant weekend ahead! :)


Best regards


Project Orion III

Home Sweet Home!

Project Orion III returned to Singapore only on the 1st July, instead of the 30th June due to an unforeseen circumstance. We arrived back to Singapore safely in the morning of 1st July. The team went to HQ first to sort out what needed sorting like Logistics who were counting the merchandise that were brought back as well as the distribution of Banana Kerepek amongst members.

From the bottom of our hearts, we thank each and every one of you for your support and encouragements during the expedition project. We may have returned from the expedition but this blog will still be updated with information about Turtle conservation articles,etc.

Once again, thank you very much for your support and do feel free to leave a message or question for us in our chatbox and we will get back to you as soon as possible :)

Good day ahead, everyone.

Yours sincerely

Project Orion III

Last Night @ Kampung Mangkuk

Tonight is the last night the team will spend at Kampung Mangkuk and we have been packing since we arrived back at the Pink House this late afternoon. Project Orion III has thus been successfully carried out and we are happy yet reluctant to leave this place after such meaningful two weeks.

Dinner at Kak Ta's place was the livest of all nights where most of the rangers and their families as well as members of World Wildlife Fund (WWF) whom we have been working closely with, were present. All of us ate together and spent quite a bit of time chatting with one another, knowing that this is the last night we have at Kampung Mangkuk. After which, we headed back to the Pink House and retire for the night.

Rest & Relax @ Pulau Lang Tengah! (Day 12-14)

By the 11^th day – 26^th June, Project Orion III completed all objectives of this expedition project! After the huge BBQ meal graciously prepared by PEWANIS, the team retired for the night to prepare for the next phase of the trip- our R&R at Pulau Lang Tengah!

We departed on the 27^th June and arrived at Pulau Lang Tengah after a 45 minutes Boat Ride. We had lunch shortly after we arrived.  The resort was truly a treat for the team and we even attempted Snorkelling on the second day we were at Pulau Lang Tengah. The following are some photos of the resort as well as our Snorkelling activities! J

Jetty @ Pulau Lang Tengah

One of the swimming pool @ Pulau Lang Tengah!

A scenic shot by Violet!

Project Orion III (except Hamida) S-N-O-R-K-E-L-L-I-N-G! :)

(Left) Gladys and Sharon (Right) under-water :D

Violet coming out from the waters, back onto the boat!

The following ‘Eat. Sleep. Dive’ was imprinted on a T-shirt which Eddy bought it at one of the stalls by the roads at the jetty.  Basically what we did during R&R were the above. It summarizes the entire stay at D’Coconut :D

On the 29^th June, we returned to Kampong Mungkuk – The Pink House for the last night of the trip and we will depart from here to the airport tomorrow at 1400 hours.

We are coming home tomorrow! There will be a final post from Seitu, Terengganu before we return. Stay tuned & once again, thank you for reading! J