Showing posts with label turtle. Show all posts
Showing posts with label turtle. Show all posts
Monday, December 8, 2014
Tuesday, June 10, 2014
Will ecotourism be good for the Turtle Islands?
A group of small islands in the southern province of Tawi-Tawi has long
been the birthplace of the gentle and resilient green sea turtles, which
is said to be the oldest reptile species in the world.
More than 2,000 of the turtles known locally as “pawikan” nest in the islands every year. Other species, such as the hawksbill turtle, also frequent the area, which lies south of wildlife bountiful Palawan.
Such distinction has earned the island cluster the name Turtle Islands, the last major green sea turtle sanctuary in Southeast Asia and one of the only 10 remaining nesting sites all over the world.
Its remote
location and lack of regular means of transportation has made the Turtle
Islands, which was once held by the United Kingdom, highly untouched
despite the Philippine tourism hype.
But that may soon change. The government has announced that ecotourism projects are being planned for three of the six major isles which are part of the municipality of Turtle Islands.
More tourists
The effort has been launched amid an observed increase in the number of tourists visiting the area in recent year, a statement from the Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) showed.
The government agency cited local tourism records, which reported a total of 1,139 local and foreign tourists in 2012, up from only 1,058 for the aggregate of 2010 and 2011.
“Tourists visit us to witness marine turtles lay their eggs or watch the hatchlings struggle out of their nests and make their way to the sea,” MinDA quoted Tawi-Tawi Governor Sadikul Sahali said.
“We need the appropriate facilities that will not only accommodate our tourists, but also ensure the safety and protection of the turtles and their nesting sites,” Sahali said further.
Secretary Luwalhati Antonino of MinDA said a budget of P30 million has been secure for the project, bulk of which will be from the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority.
The projects will include elevated wooden boardwalks, turtle watching lounges and several cottages for the islands of Taganak, Bakkungan and Baguan, the most widely visited islands.
The facilities, MinDA said, will protect the turtles from tourists while allowing visitors to observe the experience they made the trip for: watching the gentle creatures lay their eggs at night.
“[R]esidents of Turtle Islands can earn sustainable livelihood by promoting this famous attraction, while ensuring the protection of the endangered species and their nesting sites,” Antonino noted.
She added that the initiative is part of the Brunei Darussalam Indonesia Malaysia Philippine East ASEAN Growth Area’s programs to protect the Greater Sulu-Sulawesi Corridor’s biodiversity.
Caution urged
Commenting on the plan, environmental advocacy group Greenpeace urged government to “proceed with caution especially since turtle nesting grounds are particularly sensitive to any slight disturbance. “
“A full resource accounting should be conducted and its carrying capacity determined before any development is started,” Greenpeace Southeast Asia oceans campaigner Vince Cinches said in an email.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources tagged all marine turtle species as endangered due to the critical decline in the world’s marine turtle population.
In the Philippines, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources in 1979 launched the Pawikan Conservation Project to address the dwindling number of local marine turtles.
Turtle Islands has been declared a protected area in 1997 by the Philippines and Malaysia, which governs three of the islands in the cluster. It was the world’s first transboundary protected area.
Cinches said the plan to develop the Turtle Islands “must conform to all internationally accepted environmental principles and comply with Philippine environmental laws…”
“Moreover, the ecotourism plan should be jointly developed by local communities, scientists, non-government and civil society organization representatives, and other stakeholders,” he added.
All ecotourism activities in the island should also be coupled with education efforts, Cinches said, adding that all visitors must undergo comprehensive briefing and be given guides on behavior in the islands.
Aside fom marine turtles, the Turtle Islands is also home to 34 species of birds, 27 coral species, 128 fish species, 62 species of marine flora and other wild animals such as fruit bats and reptiles.
Ecotourism for the economy
“Ecotourism, as long as developed strictly in accordance with ecological principles, is one of the many services a healthy ecosystem gives,” Cinches told Yahoo Philippines.
The industry provides more income for local government and also “reduces the dependency of communities on poaching and veer them away from doing destructive marine activities.”
“If indeed, Turtle Island Wildlife Sanctuary will be opened to the public, it should be a model for sustainability and one that will ensure true protection of our marine ecosystem rather than just a revenue-making strategy,” Cinches said.
Source: Here
read more "Will ecotourism be good for the Turtle Islands?"
More than 2,000 of the turtles known locally as “pawikan” nest in the islands every year. Other species, such as the hawksbill turtle, also frequent the area, which lies south of wildlife bountiful Palawan.
Such distinction has earned the island cluster the name Turtle Islands, the last major green sea turtle sanctuary in Southeast Asia and one of the only 10 remaining nesting sites all over the world.
But that may soon change. The government has announced that ecotourism projects are being planned for three of the six major isles which are part of the municipality of Turtle Islands.
More tourists
The effort has been launched amid an observed increase in the number of tourists visiting the area in recent year, a statement from the Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) showed.
The government agency cited local tourism records, which reported a total of 1,139 local and foreign tourists in 2012, up from only 1,058 for the aggregate of 2010 and 2011.
“Tourists visit us to witness marine turtles lay their eggs or watch the hatchlings struggle out of their nests and make their way to the sea,” MinDA quoted Tawi-Tawi Governor Sadikul Sahali said.
“We need the appropriate facilities that will not only accommodate our tourists, but also ensure the safety and protection of the turtles and their nesting sites,” Sahali said further.
Secretary Luwalhati Antonino of MinDA said a budget of P30 million has been secure for the project, bulk of which will be from the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority.
The projects will include elevated wooden boardwalks, turtle watching lounges and several cottages for the islands of Taganak, Bakkungan and Baguan, the most widely visited islands.
The facilities, MinDA said, will protect the turtles from tourists while allowing visitors to observe the experience they made the trip for: watching the gentle creatures lay their eggs at night.
“[R]esidents of Turtle Islands can earn sustainable livelihood by promoting this famous attraction, while ensuring the protection of the endangered species and their nesting sites,” Antonino noted.
She added that the initiative is part of the Brunei Darussalam Indonesia Malaysia Philippine East ASEAN Growth Area’s programs to protect the Greater Sulu-Sulawesi Corridor’s biodiversity.
Caution urged
Commenting on the plan, environmental advocacy group Greenpeace urged government to “proceed with caution especially since turtle nesting grounds are particularly sensitive to any slight disturbance. “
“A full resource accounting should be conducted and its carrying capacity determined before any development is started,” Greenpeace Southeast Asia oceans campaigner Vince Cinches said in an email.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources tagged all marine turtle species as endangered due to the critical decline in the world’s marine turtle population.
In the Philippines, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources in 1979 launched the Pawikan Conservation Project to address the dwindling number of local marine turtles.
Turtle Islands has been declared a protected area in 1997 by the Philippines and Malaysia, which governs three of the islands in the cluster. It was the world’s first transboundary protected area.
Cinches said the plan to develop the Turtle Islands “must conform to all internationally accepted environmental principles and comply with Philippine environmental laws…”
“Moreover, the ecotourism plan should be jointly developed by local communities, scientists, non-government and civil society organization representatives, and other stakeholders,” he added.
All ecotourism activities in the island should also be coupled with education efforts, Cinches said, adding that all visitors must undergo comprehensive briefing and be given guides on behavior in the islands.
Aside fom marine turtles, the Turtle Islands is also home to 34 species of birds, 27 coral species, 128 fish species, 62 species of marine flora and other wild animals such as fruit bats and reptiles.
Ecotourism for the economy
“Ecotourism, as long as developed strictly in accordance with ecological principles, is one of the many services a healthy ecosystem gives,” Cinches told Yahoo Philippines.
The industry provides more income for local government and also “reduces the dependency of communities on poaching and veer them away from doing destructive marine activities.”
“If indeed, Turtle Island Wildlife Sanctuary will be opened to the public, it should be a model for sustainability and one that will ensure true protection of our marine ecosystem rather than just a revenue-making strategy,” Cinches said.
Source: Here
Monday, May 19, 2014
Turtle's chances soar with prosthetic fin modelled on wings of F-22 Raptor
A badly injured sea turtle's prospects are looking up, thanks to a new prosthetic fin designed by an Israeli team and modelled on the wings of a US fighter jet.
The green sea turtle, named "Hofesh", the Hebrew word for "freedom", was caught in a fishing net off Israel's Mediterranean coast in early 2009. With his two left flippers badly injured, rescuers had to amputate, leaving him with a pair of stumps that made it difficult to swim.
Yaniv Levy, director of Israel's Sea Turtle Rescue
Shlomi Gez, an industrial design student at Jerusalem's Hadassah College, read about the animal on the internet and wanted to help. He designed a prosthetic based on a fish's dorsal fin. The contraption provided some improvement, but Hofesh still had trouble breathing and rising to the surface.
Then, inspired by the design of Lockheed Martin's F-22 Raptor warplane, Gez designed a new prosthetic with two fins. The device, somewhat resembling the aircraft's wings, was strapped on to Hofesh's back on Thursday, allowing him to move easily around his tank.
"I discovered it worked better than one fin on the back," Gez explained. "With two fins, he keeps relatively balanced, even above the water."
Levy said that Hofesh will never be able to return to the wild.
But he shares a tank with a blind female turtle named Tsurit, and researchers are optimistic the pair will mate, potentially adding to the local population of the endangered green sea turtles.
He said it was difficult to say exactly how old the two turtles are, but they are estimated to be between 20 and 25, and approaching the age of sexual maturity.
"We have great plans for this guy," Levy said.
"They will never go back to the wild, but their offspring will be released the minute they hatch and go immediately into the sea and live normally in the wild," he added.
Source: Here
read more "Turtle's chances soar with prosthetic fin modelled on wings of F-22 Raptor"
The green sea turtle, named "Hofesh", the Hebrew word for "freedom", was caught in a fishing net off Israel's Mediterranean coast in early 2009. With his two left flippers badly injured, rescuers had to amputate, leaving him with a pair of stumps that made it difficult to swim.
Shlomi Gez, an industrial design student at Jerusalem's Hadassah College, read about the animal on the internet and wanted to help. He designed a prosthetic based on a fish's dorsal fin. The contraption provided some improvement, but Hofesh still had trouble breathing and rising to the surface.
Then, inspired by the design of Lockheed Martin's F-22 Raptor warplane, Gez designed a new prosthetic with two fins. The device, somewhat resembling the aircraft's wings, was strapped on to Hofesh's back on Thursday, allowing him to move easily around his tank.
"I discovered it worked better than one fin on the back," Gez explained. "With two fins, he keeps relatively balanced, even above the water."
Levy said that Hofesh will never be able to return to the wild.
But he shares a tank with a blind female turtle named Tsurit, and researchers are optimistic the pair will mate, potentially adding to the local population of the endangered green sea turtles.
He said it was difficult to say exactly how old the two turtles are, but they are estimated to be between 20 and 25, and approaching the age of sexual maturity.
"We have great plans for this guy," Levy said.
"They will never go back to the wild, but their offspring will be released the minute they hatch and go immediately into the sea and live normally in the wild," he added.
Source: Here
Sunday, February 23, 2014
SeaWorld Orlando returns rescued sea turtle to wild
ORLANDO -- A juvenile Kemp’s Ridley sea turtle that was rescued in 2012 off the Cape Cod, Mass. Coast was returned to the wild Thursday by the SeaWorld Orlando Animal Rescue Team.
A total of 24 sea turtles were rescued from cold stress by the U.S. Coast Guard in November 2012 and then brought to SeaWorld Orlando for treatment. The turtle released Thursday was the last of the group to be returned to the wild.
Source: Here
read more "SeaWorld Orlando returns rescued sea turtle to wild"
Source: Here
Friday, February 14, 2014
Mapping pinpoints turtles' danger zones
The Atlantic Ocean is home to the last large populations of leatherback turtles — but it is not always a hospitable habitat. The migratory nature of the turtles, the world's largest, makes them vulnerable to unintended capture by fishermen.
But with such ‘bycatch’ largely unreported, and the leatherbacks (Dermochelys coriacea) meandering across wide swaths of the Atlantic, understanding how best to protect them has been difficult. Now scientists have used satellite data that tracks turtle paths between 1995 and 2010 to help identify nine zones in the Atlantic Ocean where leatherbacks and fishermen are most likely to clash1.
Source: Here
read more "Mapping pinpoints turtles' danger zones"
Source: Here
Friday, September 6, 2013
Coast Guard to help release 500 baby sea turtles
BOCA RATON, Fla. (AP) -- The U.S. Coast Guard is helping a marine scientist release more than 500 sea turtle hatchlings by hand off the coast of Boca Raton.
On Thursday, crewmembers from Coast Guard Station Fort Lauderdale will assist Melanie Stadler, a marine scientist with Gumbo Limbo Nature Center.
Source: Here
read more "Coast Guard to help release 500 baby sea turtles"
Source: Here
Monday, August 19, 2013
In turtle season, resorts get in on the action
Each year, roughly from May through October, sea turtles visit the shores of Florida and Caribbean beaches to lay their eggs. The mother turtles can be seen laying scores of golf-ball-sized eggs in a hole they make and cover with sand. And when their tiny babies hatch several weeks later (incubation time varies with species, from 45 to 70 days, and occurs mostly in the summer), the babies can be spotted slowly making their way to the sea.
Here are some hotels that have features to appeal to turtle-loving families:
Source: Here
read more "In turtle season, resorts get in on the action "
Source: Here
Tuesday, July 16, 2013
Fox Sends Sea Turtle Back to Sea
On Wednesday, a sea turtle had been spotted by a mother with her two sons on the roadway of Gulf Drive. Suzi Fox was then immediately called by them at around 4:30 a. m.
Fox is the Anna Maria Island Turtle Watch's director. It has been found that she along with the family got off their knees, pushing off the turtle and bringing her back down. The turtle had climbed almost two feet of rocks by then.
Source: Here
read more "Fox Sends Sea Turtle Back to Sea"
Source: Here
Sunday, July 1, 2012
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Lonesome George Wallpapers & Pics
Lonesome George Picture
Lonesome George image
Lonesome George Wallpaper
Lonesome George Wallpaper
Lonesome George Wallpaper
Lonesome George Wallpaper
Lonesome George Wallpaper
Lonesome George Video
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
Remains of Giant Turtle Discovered – No Teens or Mutants, though
The discovery of the remains of a giant turtle has become the subject of a lot of attention recently, given how much of a “giant” the discovery was – estimated to be as big as a small car when it was alive.
Found in the dig-site of a Columbian coal mile, the fossilized remains of a giant Carbonemys cofrinii (AKA Coal Turtle) is estimated to be 60 million years old, with the giant turtle prowling the earth with massive powerful jaws.
Researches also noted the presence of another fossil close to the proximity of the giant turtle, the shell of another turtle of the same species, which measures five feet and seven inches wide.
The giant turtle discovery falls in line with the area’s reputation for gigantic creatures being present at the time, with records even indicating that one of the largest snake fossils ever found hails from the same area, estimated to have been alive some 60 million years ago.
The giant turtle, given its size, was in the position to basically devour anything it could grab hold, as the image of the giant turtle wrestling with a crocodile comes into mind. The turtle is winning, of course.
With a skull comparably as large as football player’s helmet, the power of its jaws would have been really strong, and as it size is massive, the allusion of a Classic Volkswagen Beetle would understandably come up, when talking about the giant turtle’s car-comparable comparison.
Wednesday, May 16, 2012
Reunited After Close to 2 Years
Heartwarming tales of lost family pets reunited with households are rare, and a recently told tale of its caliber comes in a rarer, more hard-to-encounter variation – a pet turtle reunited with her family after nearly 2 years being apart from them.
Katrina, the once-lost now-found turtle, was happy with the Cody’s who warmed up to her, naturally. Taking part in day-to-day home activities, Katrina would sleep with the kids, and spend time playing with the family in the backyard.
Sadly, Katrina and the Cody’s were separated from each other one fateful day in 2010.
But all that changed when Hickory Parks worker Trish Passman found Katrina simply chilling out in a parking lot, some 19 months after Katrina and the Cody’s were separated.
Passman noticed a dog tag hanging on the back of the turtle’s shell, and after cleaning it up as best as she could, managed to read out the details written on the tag.
After calling the number and leaving a message, Eric Cody then informed the kids of this trip to Hickory, under the guise of picking something up for the family’s go-cart race team. Needless to say, that something was the team’s official mascot, whose reunion rates high as a heartwarming tale of lost pets once again found.
Now back with the Cody’s, its business as usual for Katrina minus one aspect – she’s no longer allowed to go out the backyard, unsupervised.
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