Turtle whisperer protects endangered creatures
The hawksbill sea turtle is an endangered sea turtle, but if the actions of Ovan Coombs, licensed game warden and water sports manager at Jamaica Inn in Ocho Rios, are anything to go by, then the creatures are in safe hand.
Since taking the job of water sports manager in 2016 at the hotel and having accepted an invitation to become a turtle whisperer, Coombs has monitored the laying, nesting, hatching and release of thousands of baby turtles that have hatched on the resort’s beach.
Coombs credits his ‘teacher, Mel Tennant, who is described as Jamaica’s protector of sea turtles, for his getting involved in this activity.
“From time to time turtles would come up, and I would be notified by my water sports team,” he said. “I would come in the morning, locate the nest and find out where the eggs are. I would do an opening of the nest and make sure the eggs are at least a foot beneath the surface of the sand and also it’s not in a water prone area.
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Photo from Jamaica Star.
