Turtle Islands Heritage Protected Area
Malaysian and The Philippines Work Together to Save Marine Turtles
Oct 15, 2008
In May of 1996, the Republic of the Philippines and the Government of Malaysia signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) creating the Turtle Island Heritage Protected Area (TIHPA). Six islands in the Philippines and three in Malaysia make up the TIHPA. But only some of the islands have full protection for sea turtles in place.
The Sea Turtles of Malaysia and the Philippines
The green sea turtle ((Chelonia mydas) is the most common nesting turtle in the Turtle Island Heritage Protected Area. This sea turtle species has been listed as endangered since 1982. Hawksbill turtles (Eretmochelys imbricata) are also found in the islands but their numbers are much lower.
Olive Ridleys (Lepidochelys olivacea) and leatherback (Dermochelys coriacea) are found in both Malaysia and the Philippines, but not in significant numbers within the Turtle Islands Heritage Protected Area.
Threats to Sea Turtles in Malaysia and the Philippines
The biggest threats to nesting sea turtles in these two countries is egg collecting. On some of the Philippines’ Turtle Islands a limited amount of egg collecting is allowed. Egg collectors must have permits. But illegal collecting also occurs. Dynamite fishing also occurs in some areas of the Turtle Islands Heritage Protected Area, despite being illegal.
In the Philippines, funding has been limited for marine protected areas, making it difficult to enforce any regulations put in place to protect the biodiversity of the islands. Malaysia has been able to put more funds and staffing into protecting its sea turtles.
Turtle Islands Heritage Protected Area Efforts to Save Sea Turtles
Many of the nesting beaches within the Protected Area are monitored. Eggs from nests in danger of poaching or being washed away are moved to artificial nests in a hatchery where they can safely develop.
When the turtle hatchlings emerge from the nest they are caught in netting, counted and then carried to the waterline to prevent predation by seabirds. Hatchery nests are inspected and cleaned each year. This prevents spread of disease and allows researchers to count the number of successful hatchings vs the number of eggs that failed to hatch.
Education programs reach out to young people living on the Turtle Islands. They learn about sea turtle egg and hatchling management on the islands and participate in Coastal Cleanup Days, which help to raise awareness of the importance of the marine environment to the people of the Turtle Islands.
The Turtle Islands Heritage Protected Area was awarded the 20th J. Paul Getty Award for Wildlife Conservation. But both the Pawikan Conservation Project (Pawikan is Filipino for marine turtle) in the Philippines and Sabah Parks in Malaysia agree that there is more to be done to save sea turtles.
 |
