Research Released Today Reports Almost 3,000 Endangered Loggerhead Sea Turtles Washed Up Dead on Baja California Sur Beaches Over Five-Year Period.
Conservation efforts needed to protect endangered species from accidental and deliberate capture; SEE Turtles conservation tourism offers one solution to high death toll.
Santa Cruz, CA - Wallace J. Nichols of California Academy of Sciences and University of California Santa Cruz researcher Hoyt Peckham have been counting endangered sea turtle carcasses; one part of their work to assess and eliminate threats to endangered loggerhead sea turtle populations in Baja California Sur, Mexico.
Their co-authored research, which was published today, yielded
shocking results - almost 3,000 sea turtles were found dead along a 27- mile stretch of coast during a five-year period from 2003 to 2007. The full report can be accessed freely online in the open access journal Endangered Species Research [http://www.int-res.com/abstracts/esr/bycatch/bycatchpp13/].
"We have counted so many dead turtles. We have piles of data on
thousands of carcasses. What we need now are conservation actions, viable solutions and real alternatives for these fishermen," said Wallace J. Nichols, co-author and Research Associate with California Academy of Sciences.
With publication of their findings, the scientists are increasing
awareness of the problems facing sea turtles in this area, which are
accidental capture during fishing operations, known as "bycatch", and illegal fishing for turtles, or "poaching". Along with their Mexican coauthors and colleagues, they hope this report will encourage Mexico's government agencies to finalize creation of a refuge that protects turtles and encourages sustainable fishing in the area.
The study underscores that bycatch, and to a lesser degree poaching, are significantly impacting this endangered animal's chances for survival.
"We're seeing what are apparently the highest documented bycatch and stranding rates in the world," commented lead author Hoyt Peckham of UC Santa Cruz. "But the high bycatch rates offer us all an unexpected conservation opportunity. By working with just a handful of fishermen to diminish their bycatch we can save hundreds of turtles," added Peckham.
The authors partnered with local fishermen not only to assess bycatch but also to increase awareness of its far-reaching effects and work towards ending the threat. "Once aware of the ocean-wide impacts of their local bycatch," commented Hoyt Peckham, "fishermen strive to fish more cleanly by switching to different techniques, target species or areas – as a result, bycatch levels were down in 2008." Additionally, local fishermen are calling on the Mexican government to designate a sea turtle refuge that would officially protect the turtle bycatch "hotspot".
One of the best solutions to these problems is to increase awareness among fishermen about the consequences of their actions and to offer an alternative livelihood. Conservation tourism can help provide an alternative for Baja California's fishermen. Some fishermen look to turtle conservation tourism as an alternative to dwindling, inefficient fisheries.
Through training and a steady tourism market, many fishermen and
former poachers have come to value sea turtles more alive than dead, as giving eco-safe tours can yield more income than fishing.
SEE Turtles is a conservation tourism program that highlights
communities protecting sea turtles. SEE Turtles helps by bringing
much needed income tocommunity-based sea turtle conservation efforts, providing economic alternatives to fishermen and poachers, and inspiring travelers to take a more active role in protecting sea
turtles.
The program links travelers with critical sea turtle conservation sites so that vacation dollars make a difference for sea turtles and for the livelihood of community residents who protect them.
North Pacific loggerhead sea turtles travel more than 7,000 miles from Japan to Baja California Sur to feed and grow in nearshore waters, spending up to 30 years there before returning to Japan to breed. The number of nesting females in Japan has declined by 50 to 80 percent over the past 10 years.
For more information about sea turtle conservation tourism opportunities and how to book a trip, visit www.seeturtles.org or contact Brad Nahill (brad@oceanrevolution.org)