SEA TURTLES AND THEIR CONSERVATION

CHAPTER: 1

1.1 HISTORY
Accounts of Ashokas prowess as an empire builder, visionary leader, and promoter of Buddhism are well known, but why do we hear so little of Kachhapa(Olive Ridley Turtles) in relationship to the last and most renowned king of the Mauryan dynasty? Ashoka, in his later, more illuminated years, represents the noblest of quests - to unite humanity in collaboration and peace; and Kachhapa is his greatest ambassador. Kachhapa, or olive ridley sea turtles, that nest in Orissa and Maharashtra migrate to Sri Lanka, underscoring their role as Ashokan ambassadors. But that is only the start; marine turtles have tremendous capacity to migrate and disperse over vast distances. Green turtles that feed in the Gulf of Kutch nest in Pakistan; leatherback turtles that nest in the Nicobars most likely circulate throughout most of the Indian Ocean basin, possibly venturing even into the Red Sea to feed on seasonal concentrations of their favorite food jellyfish. During certain stages of their life cycle marine turtles may enjoy Kalingas world famous beaches, or the once tranquil feeding grounds at the doorstep of Krishnas palace, or the remote islands of far flung territories once inhabited by cannibals, but the rest of their lives are spent in other territories and often on the high seas. Indias marine turtles are only Indias for a part of their life history; otherwise they are not Indian at all. These are, after all, marine turtles, and the oceans are their home. It is nothing for a turtle to cross an ocean basin while it is growing into an adult, or to make migrations of thousands of kilometers between feeding grounds and mating grounds. Over the past few years there have been numerous initiatives uniting marine turtle specialists from the Indian Ocean in workshops, seminars, and other events, in order to enhance communication and collaboration.

1.2 OBJECTIVE OF STUDY

Marine turtles have travelled the seas for over 100 million years. Once they shared the planet with prehistoric animals, most of which are long since gone. The marine turtles survived the extinction of the dinosaurs and they are still present in the worlds oceans today. Until recently, their survival success was obvious as marine turtles crawled ashore to nest in abundance on tropical, subtropical and some temperate beaches around the globe. Unfortunately, hunting for meat, shell and eggs, habitat destruction, fisheries by-catch, international trade, pollution, boat strikes, introduced predators, disease and climate change have entirely wiped out or severely reduced marine turtle populations to mere shadows of their former glory. Today, three of the seven existing species of marine turtle are critically endangered with extinction, three are endangered and due to insufficient information the status of the seventh species remains unknown. All parts of an ecosystem are important, if you lose one, the rest will eventually follow. This fact force human beings to rethink that what they have done, extracted numerous resources from environment without sustainable development concept in mind. This trend has lead to many deadly threats to other living beings; many species are on the verge of their extinction. Loss of any one of the species, severally affect other ones. In this modern era, it is required that everyone should be aware of this very important fact and should contribute to environment conservation activities. We have chosen Sea Turtle conservation as a representative one so that we can study their conservation efforts and further can try of giving our inputs to nature conservation activities, as moral responsibility of being part of this nature.

1.3 MARINE TURTLE LIFECYCLE

Marine turtles are creatures of the ocean but they still depend on land for reproduction. Female turtles crawl painstakingly ashore to dig nests and lay eggs on sandy beaches. It takes hours for the female turtle to complete the nesting process before returning to the sea. The heat of the sand incubates the eggs and they develop without any help from parent turtles. Roughly two months later, tiny hatchlings emerge from the nest and dart towards the water. Once the hatchlings reach the sea, a swimming frenzy ensues to reach open ocean zones where currents meet and the small turtles find food and refuge from the many predators that prey on hatchling turtles. After several years far away from land, most marine turtle species approach the coast again as juveniles. The young turtles develop specialized feeding habits that vary between species. Hawksbill turtles Eretmochelys imbricata eat mainly sponges, green turtles Chelonia mydas like sea grass or algae and loggerhead turtles Caretta caretta prefer mollusks and crustaceans. Juvenile turtles migrating between feeding areas can move thousands of kilometres. Only once marine turtles become adults, after decades, do they return to the beach area where they were born to lay their own eggs. The long time to reach maturity and the many natural dangers faced by hatchlings and juveniles mean that as few as 1 in 1000 eggs will survive to adulthood. Adult marine turtles migrate hundreds or even thousands of kilometers between feeding habitats, mating areas and their preferred nesting beach. After nesting the first time, marine turtles may return to the same nesting beach to lay eggs every couple of years for over two decades.

1.4 OLIVE RIDLEY TURTLES

Olive ridley (Lepidochelys olivacea)

Endangered Sea Turtles:

Ancient ocean dwellers, sea turtles have lived on the Earth for 150 million years, since before the time of the dinosaurs. All seven species of sea turtles are endangered and protected under various national laws and international treaties. Sea turtles hydrodynamic body shape and paddle-shaped limbs or flippers make them agile swimmers. Though fully adapted to marine life, sea turtles depend on land to complete the most critical stage of their life cycle, reproduction. They build their nests and deposit their eggs only on tropical and subtropical sandy beaches. Appearance: The carapace of this species is a plain olive gray above and is creamy or white below. Weight: 85 lbs (39 kg) Carapace length: 2.5 feet (0.76 m). Status: One of the endangered sea turtle species, olive ridleys are thought to be the most abundant. However, they are still endangered because there remain only a few nesting sites worldwide where they congregate in large numbers.

Habitat and Feeding Behavior: Olive ridleys live primarily in the northern hemisphere, principally in the eastern Pacific and Indian oceans. In the recent past, there were important populations in northern South America. They migrate thousands of miles in the course of a year, between nesting and feeding grounds. Adults travel and rest mostly in surface waters, but have been observed diving and feeding in waters 550 ft (about 200 m) deep. Olive ridleys spend their entire lives in the ocean; only the females come ashore when it is time to nest.

Food: The food of the adult olive ridley includes lobsters, fish, crustaceans, mollusks, algae, fish egg and jellyfish

Nesting: The olive ridley is one of two turtle species with a phenomenal nesting behavior known as arribada (Spanish for arrival). During the arribada, breeding turtles congregate in the waters in front of the nesting beach and then, signaled by some, as yet unknown,cue, they emerge from the sea en masse. Olive ridleys may take 20 years or more to reach sexual maturity.They return to lay their eggs on the very same beach from which they first hatched. As many as 610,000 females may nest in one arribada, which may continue for several days. Nesting occurs mainly in the summer and fall in the Eastern Pacific and may be repeated several times each season. Olive ridleys lay about 100 eggs in each nest. Incubation takes from 45-65 days, depending on temperature. When born, hatchlings are about 1.5 inches long, around .6 oz., and are almost completely black. In their race to the water, their dark coloring against the light-colored sand of some of the beaches where they hatch makes them easy prey. Predators include birds, raccoons, hyenas, ghost crabs, monitor lizards, feral pigs and dogs. Once they reach the sea, they must contend with sea birds and carnivorous fish. The known natural predators of adult olive ridleys include sharks, orcas, jaguars, and crocodiles. It is estimated that approximately 1 adult nesting turtle will survive for every 3,000 eggs laid.

Primary breeding grounds: The most important breeding grounds are in the eastern Pacific Ocean, on the western central coast of Mexico, the west coasts of Costa Rica and Nicaragua, and in India. Nesting grounds are also found in Surinam, French Guinea, Angola, Mozambique, Japan, Guatemala, Panama, and Papua New Guinea.

A Revolutionary event

NESTS:These artificial nests are used to protect the eggs.

Eggs were brought protected in the nests.

and

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Number of turtles hatching out

The First Sip

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Officials of NGO Checking the turtles...

March towards Sea...

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Journey to home...

Turtles Sculpture

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CHAPTER: 2

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2.1 THREATS Factors responsible for sea turtle extinction in Maharashtra:

a) Direct Factors:

1. Egg stealing:The huge amount of eggs laid by sea turtles on sea shores are stolen by the people every year. These eggs are used by them as source of food and income. Also it has medical importance. For example ,in Malaysia , on shores of Sarwak, there used to be days when the yearly count of eggs laid by sea turtles was nearly 30 to 35 lakhs, but over the years due to extensive egg stealing activities, the count have reduced to near 2 to 2.5 lakhs per annum. This factor is major responsible for sea turtle extinction throughout the world.

2. Wild animals: Sea turtle eggs are one of the main foods of the wild animals in sea shore regions. The wild animals like foxes and even pet animals like dogs also eat these eggs.

3. Killing of sea turtles for their meat:In many of the villages on the sea shore of the Maharashtra, people catch the female turtles coming on the sea shore to lay eggs or those caught in fishermans net and sell them at higher rates in market. Those were killed or meat, oil is extracted from this meat which has a special medical importance. Even the back shells of sea turtles are used in show case things.
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4. Fishermans net: Day by day the count of death of sea turtles after being trapped in fishermans net many times fishermen lay their nets for s in deep as well as shallow sea areas .some of the sea turtles get caught in them. It is required for sea turtles to come at water level after an hour and so for respiration. But as they get trapped there, they cannot come to sea level & get died. For example, in Orissa, more than 15 thousands turtles were recorded dead due to getting caught in fishermens net.

b) Indirect Factors: In addition to direct factors responsible for sea turtle extinction, it is observed that places where sea turtles lay eggs are decreasing year by year. Along with sea, the area of sea shore beyond the high tide line plays an important role in their reproduction cycle. This area is also habitat of migrated birds or extinct flora & fauna. These areas are also in danger due to human activities. The effects of indirect factors which we have explained below are not seen now but in future they will considerably affect the Biodiversity.

1. Sand extraction:In many sea shores, the sand is extracted on a large scale construction or ores purpose this causes change in normal structure of sea shores making them unsuitable for sea Turtle's nest.

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2. Tree plantation:To protect the villages on sea shore from sea winds or for some reasons, many kinds of trees are planted on sea shore. For this plantation, sometimes the natural vegetation there is cut off. This alters the original structure or habitat there. The most of the sea Turtles life is spent in sea only during breeding period female Turtles come on shore for few hours only and prepare nest beyond high tide level. Due to plantation in these areas, there is decrease the sun light received by laid eggs as trees restrict the light. This factor enters in the sequence of male-female Turtles percentage hatching from eggs. Also roots of trees cause difficulty for female turtles to prepare nests.

3. Constructions of docks and harbors:The construction of docks, harbors and jetties on sea shores severally affects sea turtle habitat .due to this sea turtles traditional nesting sites gets destroyed due to increase in sea way transportations ,many times turtles collides boats, ferries resulting into their deaths .Also sea ways cause water pollution due to engine oils, harmful chemicals. This pollution affects sea turtle lifestyle as well as other aquatic animals.

4. Luminosity on sea shores:Due to lights on docks and harbors, sea side roads, building considerable amounts of light spread over sea shore & water during night. Sea turtles are more sensitive to artificial light & on such shores those turtles coming to lay eggs return back to the sea without laying eggs. An also new born turtle hatches out mostly at the night time. During night time because of the lights of the moon & stars, the horizon direction is lightened. As they are sensitive to light they found their path towards the
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sea. But due to artificial lights sea turtles lost their paths and get trapped in mangroves and other plants. And fall prey to dogs and animals, birds etc. Hence while planning the arrangement of lights on sea shore great care should be taken so that light doesnt spread over the sea shores.

5. Tourism:The tourism industry business on sea shores is increasing day by day. Many organizations people as well as government is constantly taking efforts for tourism progress. For tourism several efforts like sea shore travelling, construction, cutting of plants 7 bushes, Increase in Transportation & garbage are taken. The combine effect of all such activities is considerable affects on the Biodiversity due to uprooting of creepers.

6. Pollution:Sewage water from sea side factory different projects and cities is often let out in sea water in addition to this leakage of oils & other harmful chemicals from boats pollute the sea water. This sea water pollution affects the health of sea Turtle. The layer of oily things gets accumulated on eye respiratory organs leading to their death. Due to accumulation of harmful substances in sea water & sand over the years affect the sea turtles & their newly born babies.

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2.2 WHY TO CARE???

Why to Care About Sea Turtles?

Much can be learned about the condition of the planet's environment by looking at sea turtles. They have existed for over 100 million years, and they travel throughout the world's oceans. Suddenly, however, they are struggling to survive -- largely because of things people are doing to the planet's oceans and beaches. But what does this mean for the human species? It is possible that a world in which sea turtles cannot survive may soon become a world in which humans struggle to survive. If, however, we learn from our mistakes and begin changing our behavior, there is still time to save sea turtles from extinction. In the process, we will be saving one of the earth's most mysterious and time-honored creatures. We might just be saving ourselves too.

Major ecological effects of sea turtle extinction

1. Sea turtles, especially green sea turtles, are one of the very few animals to eat sea grass. Like normal lawn grass, sea grass needs to be constantly cut short to be healthy and help it grow across the sea floor rather than just getting longer grass blades. Sea turtles and manatees act as grazing animals that cut the grass short and help maintain the health of the sea grass beds. Over the past decades, there has been a decline in sea grass beds. This decline may be linked to the lower numbers of sea turtles. Sea grass beds are important because they provide breeding and developmental grounds for many species of fish, shellfish and crustaceans. Without sea grass beds, many marine species humans harvest would be lost, as would the lower levels of the food chain. The reactions could result in many more marine species being lost and eventually impacting humans. So if sea turtles go extinct, there would be a serious decline in sea grass beds and a decline in all the other species dependent upon the grass beds for survival. All parts of an ecosystem are important, if you lose one, the rest will eventually follow.

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2. Beaches and dune systems do not get very many nutrients during the year, so very little vegetation grows on the dunes and no vegetation grows on the beach itself. This is because sand does not hold nutrients very well. Sea turtles use beaches and the lower dunes to nest and lay their eggs. Sea turtles lay around 100 eggs in a nest and lay between 3 and 7 nests during the summer nesting season. Along a 20 mile stretch of beach on the east coast of Florida sea turtles lay over 150,000 lbs of eggs in the sand. Not every nest will hatch, not every egg in a nest will hatch, and not all of the hatchlings in a nest will make it out of the nest. All the unhatched nests, eggs and trapped hatchlings are very good sources of nutrients for the dune vegetation, even the left over egg shells from hatched eggs provide some nutrients.

Dune vegetation is able to grow and become stronger with the presence of nutrients from turtle eggs. As the dune vegetation grows stronger and healthier, the health of the entire beach/dune ecosystem becomes better. Stronger vegetation and root systems helps to hold the sand in the dunes and helps protect the beach from erosion. As the number of turtles declines, fewer eggs are laid in the beaches, providing less nutrients. If sea turtles went extinct, dune vegetation would lose a major source of nutrients and would not be as healthy and would not be strong enough to maintain the dunes, resulting in increased erosion. Once again, all parts of an ecosystem are important, if you lose one, the rest will eventually follow. Sea turtles are part of two ecosystems, the beach/dune system and the marine system. If sea turtles went extinct, both the marine and beach/dune ecosystems would be negatively affected. And since humans utilize the marine ecosystem as a natural resource for food and since humans utilize the beach/dune system for a wide variety of activities, a negative impact to these ecosystems would negatively affect humans.

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Cultural value of marine turtles

Marine turtles also have an intrinsic value. Many cultures and human societies have expressed fascination for marine turtles and they play important roles in diverse myths and stories. Creation myths from ancient Hindu culture have the Earth resting on the back of a gigantic marine turtle. Marine turtles should be conserved for future human generations to awe and ponder. The oceans of the world would be far less spectacular if marine turtles were allowed to slip into extinction.

Marine turtles feed many species in the open ocean

Most marine turtle species spend their first years in the open ocean. The small turtles eat tiny animals that they find in the floating sargassum seaweed concentrations where they live. Fish, sharks and birds in turn prey upon the young turtles. The marine turtles fill an important ecological role by controlling prey species and themselves providing food to larger predators. The disappearance of marine turtles could therefore have widespread effects in open ocean ecosystems.

Marine turtles are biological nutrient transporters

All species of marine turtle carry energy from the coastal and pelagic ecosystems where they feed to the sandy beaches where they deposit their eggs and therefore they function as biological nutrient transporters. The energy contained inside turtle eggs comes from the food items that the turtles have found in the marine environment. Through marine turtles, the health of the ocean and of the ecosystems on land is directly connected. Many wildlife species depend on marine turtles and their eggs as a source of food. If the decline in marine turtles is allowed to continue, it could have severe consequences for many marine and terrestrial plant and animal species that depend on turtles for their survival.

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A live turtle is worth more than a dead turtle

Marine turtles are economically important to humans. Coastal communities in developing countries use marine turtles as a source for food. Also, the catch of fish and invertebrates that are used for human consumption or commerce ultimately depend on healthy marine turtle populations. In recent years, marine turtles have become increasingly important as an ecotourism attraction. People are now travelling far to watch these amazing ancient mariners when they come ashore to lay eggs. This has led to a rise in tourism operations that in turn provide jobs and income to seaside communities throughout the tropical and subtropical part of the world. Observing a marine turtle laying eggs is a truly thrilling experience. Marine turtle watching increases peoples interest in marine and coastal issues and inspires commitment to support conservation efforts. Marine turtles are flagship species that attract help to themselves as well as to the many species with which they co-exist.

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2.3 HOW TO CARE???

What can you do to help marine turtles?

1) If you are working for your countrys government Support the establishment and management of Marine Protected Areas in critical marine ecosystems. Promote sustainable fisheries, and the use of turtle-excluder-devices (TEDs) to reduce by-catch of marine turtles.

2) If you are working for the fisheries industry Promote sustainable fisheries by discussing the issue within your office. To support marine turtle conservation; promote the use of turtleexcluder-devices (TEDs) that help you catch target species without the unnecessary by-catch of marine turtles.

3) When you are travelling Do Not Buy Marine Turtle Products Do not buy marine turtle products such as tortoiseshell souvenirs or any other items made from marine turtles. Report sale to authorities so action can be taken to stop illegal marine turtle trade. Participate in Beach Cleaning Activities Help to clean marine turtle nesting beaches so that hatchling turtles will have a safer passage from the nest to the ocean. Remove garbage that may be washed out to sea to stop marine Turtles from ingesting materials that cause harm.

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4) When you are at home Dispose of Garbage properly Dispose of garbage properly so that damaging rubbish will not end up in rivers, on beaches or in the ocean where it may negatively impact marine turtles and other endangered species. Write to Decision-Makers Coordinated efforts by many people sending emails and letters can influence decisions that have important consequences for the survival of endangered species and ecosystems. Spread the word Tell your friends and families about the plight of marine turtles and ask them to support marine turtle conservation activities.

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What needs to happen to save marine turtles globally?

Successful strategies to conserve marine turtles must consider their complex life cycle, and their migratory nature. Conservation work to protect marine turtles must be long-term and involve all countries that share marine turtle populations. Threats to marine turtle survival have to be addressed both locally and internationally. Around the world, many organizations are working at the local, regional and international level to promote and carry out critical conservation action to help save marine turtles and the habitats upon which they depend. Priority actions undertaken to conserve marine turtles include: Promoting Marine Protected Areas Marine turtles will only survive if large enough sections of ocean and coasts where marine turtles eat, sleep, travel, breed and nest are effectively protected. A global network of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) should form the cornerstone of international conservation efforts. Critically important nesting beaches, coastlines and areas in the open ocean should be identified and approved for conservation action. MPAs come in different shapes, sizes and management regimes and can be adapted to the habitats, species and marine turtle life-stages that most need protection. This could be a beach where marine turtles nest or an interlinked system of mangroves, sea grass beds and coral reefs which together provide marine turtles and countless other creatures with feeding grounds and nurseries. Other MPAs could be created in the open ocean along key turtle migratory routes to address threats caused by industrial fisheries and other oceanic activities. Some MPAs may need complete protection from any type of exploitation, and will include no-take zones. In other cases, marine turtle conservation activities can co-exist with sustainable fishing, tourism and other economic pursuits that are carefully managed to minimize impacts on marine turtle populations. The long-term goal is to achieve a representative network of MPAs that support marine turtle habitats and human livelihoods that depend on marine ecosystems.

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Protecting nesting beaches Marine turtles congregate to nest at predictable times and on specific beaches. Therefore, populations are very susceptible to over-exploitation by humans during the nesting period. In many cases, the declaration of protected areas around nesting beaches, and active management, are necessary to protect turtles during the time when they are most vulnerable. Due to the prolonged time to maturity, hatchlings will not return as adults to lay eggs for decades. Therefore, nesting beach projects have to be maintained for long time periods before notable results are achieved.

Supporting community education

participation,

environmental

awareness

and

Many coastal communities use marine turtles for consumption. Active involvement of local people in projects is often crucial in order to win support for conservation activities. Alternative livelihoods may have to be identified and developed for stakeholder groups that are negatively affected by restrictions on marine turtle use. Non-consumptive uses such as ecotourism or employing former turtle poachers in conservation programmes may address both conservation and human development needs. Marine turtles take a long time to reach maturity. Even if poachers take many of the marine turtles that come to nest or collect all their eggs, turtles born decades ago reach maturity and return to the nesting beach area. Often, the continuous arrival of nesting turtles gives a false sense of security and the population seems stable. A marine turtle population can appear to withstand heavy poaching for decades before the population is totally beyond recovery. Education at all levels is needed to increase the understanding of marine turtle biology and the importance of marine turtles to ecosystems and humans. It is necessary that local communities and national authorities become more involved in conserving marine turtles.

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Funding research Many marine turtle life stages take place far from land, away from human observers and remain little known. Research aimed at finding out marine turtle survival rates under natural conditions will allow identification of sensitive life stages that are impacted most by humans and that should be priorities for active conservation. Research to identify migratory corridors and feeding habitats is needed so conservation action is taken where it is most needed. Funds must be research to find out more about poorly studied marine turtle life stages so threats to marine turtle survival are identified and addressed.

Improving policy Marine turtles spend part of their lifetime on land and the remainder in the sea. Therefore, within one country the responsibility for marine turtle conservation is often divided between many government agencies. National laws have to define clear responsibilities for marine turtle conservation and make sure that adequate protection is provided to turtles on land and in the ocean. The governments should promote new legislation and policies that benefit marine turtle conservation in the context of both the species themselves, and the spaces in which turtles live, travel, eat and breed.

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2.4 STATISTICAL DATA Some of the statistics stating the extent of Sea Turtle Conservation activities in Maharashtra for the year 2010-11:

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CHAPTER: 3

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CONCLUSION & SUGGESTION

1. By considering bad effects of Docks & Harbors on the sea water and sea shore biodiversity, they should be constructed properly. 2. In order to preserve the biodiversity of sea turtles and the places, where the hatching takes place, while planning any activity, organization should consider environmental and government rules and should takes suggestions from the experts. 3. It is necessary to increase the tourism business but Government and local peoples should take care that, while progressing the tourism business, it will not harm the biodiversity of sea because natural resources is the soul of tourism business. 4. In order to avoid threats due to sea water pollution to marine turtles, proper disposal of waste water should be done and solid waste should properly destroyed etc. are some important aspects. 5. The well organized activity will always lead towards success so; administration along with the organizations should encourage people for such work. 6. As we know, progress and environment never goes hand in hand so, we have to find the way which balances the both.

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