Turtle poaching increases

The turtle tourism industry has been severely affected by the impact of the covid19 pandemic, and one expert said this has placed the species in more danger from its human predators.

In a webinar session on Thursday, Dr Michelle Cazabon-Mannette said there was an increase in poaching throughout TT.

The session titled Sea turtles in TT was geared towards sensitising the public on the importance of sea turtles to the ecosystem, climate change and its impact, as well as human impact on the species. Cazabon-Mannette, who wears many hats, such as project manager at Coastal Dynamics Ltd, technical advisor at Save Our Sea (SOS) Turtles Tobago and director at SpeSeas said out of the seven species, TT has five of those nesting here.

She said, one in one thousand hatchlings survive until maturity, and while there were patrols on the beaches during nesting season, the environmental police unit was understaffed.

Cazabon-Mannette said, “With the economic hardship that people are facing, we found that poaching was significantly up this year, especially in Tobago.

“Reports should be made to the police, the Environmental Management Authority and all relevant authorities to protect the turtles.”

She said funding remained a challenge to ensure proper conservation work, but with the assistance from non-governmental organisations (NGOs) some work was being done.

“There were many NGOs doing their part and patrolling the beaches, in particular, to help reduce poaching.

“Legally we have other important legislation that protect turtles which includes permits to access important beaches and regulations regarding the use of devices like shrimp trawlers,” Cazabon-Mannette said.

She hoped that the Sea Turtle Task Force, which will come on stream soon, will address the funding challenges for conservation work and protection of the species.

Unable to give a kick-off date for the task force, Cazabon-Mannette said, “This is the first time it is actually going forward and being executed, and will have representatives from a number of NGOs and relevant agencies.

“They will be tasked with helping to get funding, to put in place new research and monitoring as well as following through with the recommendations.”

Cazabon-Mannette called on the public to also play their part in protecting the turtles by reporting infringements.

The nesting season runs from March to September with beaches such as Matura, Fishing Pond and Grande Rivière catering for the majority of the nesting.