(MY) turtles

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Thursday July 5, 2007-The Star

 

Turtles shun Terengganu

 

KUALA TERENGGANU: The leatherback turtles are no longer nesting in

Terengganu. There has been no nesting of the critically endangered

Leatherback turtles in the state so far this year.

 

Turtle and Marine Ecosystem Centre (Tumec) Kamaruddin Ibrahim said

there were five nestings last year but " unfortunately none of the eggs

hatched. "

 

" We are just keeping our fingers crossed, hoping that the reptiles

will visit us as the nesting season is up to September, " he said.

 

He said there was an abundance of nesting sites here in the early

1960s but now even sighting one leatherback nesting was difficult. The

leatherback is the largest turtle in the world.

 

To ensure the leatherback turtles continue coming to Terengganu, Tumec

has put in place certain precautions, including round-the-clock

patrols and beefing up enforcement during nesting season.

 

" We have to introduce several drastic measures to protect the turtles

from extinction, " he said.

 

Kamaruddin noted that irresponsible fishermen were the main threat to

the leatherback as drift nets, cast to trap stingrays, inadvertently

trap and cause the deaths of the turtles.

 

" Leatherbacks could become history if the situation is not contained, "

he said.

 

Mature leatherback turtles can grow to as long as 2m and weigh almost 900kg.

 

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Fisheries Department hopes to free 30,000 hawksbill turtles - The Star

 

MALACCA: Some 30,000 hawksbill turtles are expected to be released

into the sea in stages by the end of this year.

 

Fisheries Department Resources Rehabilitation Section head Dr Sukarno

Wagiman said a total of 108 nestings had been recorded at Padang

Kemunting in Alor Gajah as of May this year.

 

Some 388 nestings were recorded last year.

 

" Last year, a total of 24,800 turtles were set free and this year we

expect to free about 30,000.

 

Off to freedom: Jebsen and Jessen employees releasing hawksbill

turtles at Padang Kamunting in Alor Gajah on Tuesday.

" We started releasing the turtles in stages from April, at the Padang

Kamunting and Pulau Upeh beaches, " Dr Sukarno told reporters at the

Jebsen and Jessen (South-East Asia) " Meet A Need " programme in

collaboration with WWF Malaysia here on Tuesday.

 

He added that about 40% of Hawksbill turtle eggs collected in Malacca

was found on Pulau Upeh while the remaining 60% was at Padang

Kamunting.

 

Dr Sukarno also said a turtle named Puteri Tanjung Dahan released by

the Malacca Chief Minister during the Hawksbill Satellite Telemetry

project in November had already swum more than 300km to the Riau

Islands south of Singapore.

 

Under the " Meet A Need " programme, 15 Jebsen and Jessen staff from

South-East Asian countries will take part in weeklong activities

cleaning and maintaining the Padang Kemunting Turtle Management

Centre.

 

Jebsen and Jessen (SEA) chairman Heinrich Jessen presented RM200,000

to WWF Malaysia and World Vision International in support of the

organisations' efforts to create a better environment and society.

 

Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Ali Rustam, who launched the programme,

told pressmen that the state government was in the midst of taking

over Pulau Upeh, which was sold to Tenaga Nasional Bhd in 2003.

 

A hawksbill turtle crawling to the sea after being released.

" The Government wants to protect the island to help preserve the

hawksbill turtles, " said Mohd Ali.

 

The Fisheries Department plans to make the island a research and

management centre for the turtles as part of its turtle conservation

programme.

 

It was reported that the island was sold to TNB for RM10.3mil

according to a memorandum signed between Yayasan Melaka and TNB on Jan

29, 2003.