We had our conference at Turtle Bay Beach Club in Watamu this year. A wonderful place! We had 6 days’ of meetings, but also had time to just enjoy the surroundings and the warmth after the cool of Nairobi. Whilst there, I was fortunate enough to witness the release of 2 lots of turtles back into the Indian Ocean. These had been caught in fishermen’s nets, then handed over to Watamu Turtle Watch (www.watamuturtles.co
m), who rehabilitated, checked and tagged them, and then released them back to the sea. Over the last 4 years they have apparently released over 3,000 turtles back to the wild. Without this scheme almost all of these turtles would have been killed. The remuneration to the fishermen is small in comparison to the (illegal) commercial worth of the turtle; so it is a sustainable programme and does not encourage abuse. What a treat to be there to witness 4 of these beautiful creatures being returned to their natural habitat!
m), who rehabilitated, checked and tagged them, and then released them back to the sea. Over the last 4 years they have apparently released over 3,000 turtles back to the wild. Without this scheme almost all of these turtles would have been killed. The remuneration to the fishermen is small in comparison to the (illegal) commercial worth of the turtle; so it is a sustainable programme and does not encourage abuse. What a treat to be there to witness 4 of these beautiful creatures being returned to their natural habitat!
1 comment:
In Oman we also get lots of Green Turtles – I’m sure some swim to Kenya. At Ras al Jinz 40,000+ have been tagged. Fortunately the main nesting areas are in a protected zone. There is also a major loggerhead Turtle nesting area on an Island – it’s probably the largest nest colony in the world – though now as there has been a hotel built on the beach that may change
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