Turtle Foundation
The Turtle Foundation is an international non-profit organization founded by a small group of individuals with the common goal of preventing the extinction of endangered sea turtles. Currently, the organization, in cooperation with local communities, leads sea turtle conservation projects in two countries - Indonesia and Cape Verde. In addition to these countries, the Turtle Foundation also has branches in Germany, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and the USA.
Leatherback sea turtle (Dermochelys coriacea)
Leatherback sea turtles got their name from their shell, which at first glance differs from the hard shell of other turtles - it has a leathery surface. With a length of up to 2.5 m and a weight of up to 900 kg, the leatherback is the largest species of sea turtle and also one of the furthest migrating turtle species. Pacific leatherbacks migrate from beaches in the so-called Coral Triangle (the sea area between Indonesia and the Philippines) to the coast of California, where they feed on numerous jellyfish every spring and fall.
Threats to leatherback sea turtles
Sea turtles are representatives of a group of reptiles that lived on Earth and crossed our seas already 100 million years ago. They are very essential elements of marine ecosystems. Leatherback sea turtles consume large numbers of jellyfish, thereby regulating and restoring populations of these marine organisms. Although they are widely distributed, their numbers have declined very steeply over the past century due to intensive egg collection and the death of turtles as bycatch by fishing boats. In addition, leatherbacks are threatened by the development of tourism and related infrastructure building in coastal areas, by ship propellers, and by pollution of the seas and oceans. Globally, leatherbacks are listed as "Vulnerable" on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, but many of their subpopulations, such as those in the Pacific and Southwest Atlantic, are critically endangered.
Activities of the Turtle Foundation
A project to protect leatherback sea turtles on Sipora Island in Indonesia
In 2017, as part of a TF survey on the consumption of turtle meat and eggs in the Mentawai Archipelago, west of Sumatra, Indonesia, a beach on the remote island of Sipora was discovered where rare leatherbacks come to lay their eggs. This beach, Buggeisiata, was unknown to the outside world until then. The turtles laying their eggs on this beach belong to a subpopulation of the northeastern Indian Ocean, about which there is a lack of information, but which is very likely to be threatened with extinction and is thus classified as critically endangered. Both the eggs and the females themselves, which come here to lay their eggs, used to be regularly almost completely consumed by residents.
Since 2017, Buggeisiata Beach has therefore been under the supervision of a team of local rangers trained by the Turtle Foundation during the nesting season, i.e. from October to May. As many nests as possible are moved to a guarded hatchery, where the turtle embryos in the clutches can develop undisturbed. Nesting and biometric data are being collected and the turtles are being tagged to learn more about this newly discovered population so it can be better protected. Since the beginning of the activities of the Turtle Foundation team, no turtle coming to lay eggs on this beach has been killed. During two nesting seasons (2017-2019), around 70 clutches were recorded here every year.
For this project to be established and to function in the long term, it must take place in cooperation with communities from local villages. In addition, the project cooperates with the local conservation authority under the Indonesian Ministry of Marine and with the Indian Dakshin Foundation.
Project to protect the loggerhead turtle in Cape Verde
Cape Verde's loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta) population is the third largest in the world (after Oman and Southeast Florida). An estimated 90% of nesting takes place on Boa Vista Island. In 2007, around 1,100 females were killed on this island, who came to the local beaches to lay their eggs. This number is estimated to represent 35% of the breeding female population.
In response to this massacre, in 2008 the Turtle Foundation decided to send its members to one of the main turtle breeding beaches on Boa Vista Island, Porto Ferreira Beach. In 2007, 600 turtles were killed at this site alone. During the first year of the patrols, the mortality rate of the turtles was reduced by 90%. Currently, in cooperation with the local army and volunteers from all over the world, 5 beaches of the island of Boa Vista with a total length of about 30 km are patrolled.
In addition to the direct protection of turtles, TF is also dedicated to educating residents and involving them in the project.
You can learn more at www.turtle-foundation.org.
How Ostrava Zoo helps
The Ostrava Zoo, together with all its visitors, supports the project of the Turtle Foundation for the protection of leatherback sea turtles on the island of Sipora through the "3 CZK for Wildlife" program.
