World Turtle News

Olive Ridley Project’s first Sea Turtle research expedition � A great success The first sea turtle research expedition in Haa Alif Atoll last November was a great success. The ORP (Olive Ridley Project) team and volunteers surveyed 25 sites and recorded a total of 91 turtle sightings. In addition, we encountered sharks, dolphins, rays, and many tropical fish. Unfortunately, we also added 37 ghost gear […]

Bold Burglary On Conservation Area A Tragic Development A gang of thieves wielding machetes and making off with goods- it sounds like the classic bank robbery, but in fact, these burglars were after something totally different. The Berau conservation area is home to endangered sea turtles which come each year to nest and lay their eggs. Protected with a barrier measuring over six feet tall,

Dredging danger threatens turtle landing site SAND dredging is destroying a known turtle landing site in Pasir Panjang, Segari, Manjung, say environmental bodies. The activity, near the estuary of Sungai Puyu, was spotted by local fishermen who then informed several environmental non-governmental organisations. Sahabat Alam Malaysia (SAM) president S.M. Mohamed Idris said the organisation is concerned with the activity as the area is one of

Local Community Unites To Break Records In Their Commitment To Marine Conservation The Sunshine Coast in Australia is one of the prime nesting destinations for endangered sea turtles; however, it is also a prime area for dumping, and this debris can be fatal to the turtles which come to lay their eggs each season. Because of this unfortunate danger, the Sunshine Coast Council organizes an

Following the turtle trail in coastal Karnataka A huge number of dead olive ridley turtles washed up on the Chennai coast recently, prompting environmental activists to warn of a crisis concerning the already endangered sea-dwelling species. The fact that the deaths are occurring during the peak nesting season also raises question about the conservation efforts being made as well as programmes in place to educate

Conservationist Turns Detective In A Race Against The Illegal Wildlife Trade It all started with a call from the local veterinary clinic to Richard Lewis, a wildlife conservationist in Madagascar, and a request to remove a microchip from a tortoise. It turns out that this was not just any tortoise. It was an Astrochelys yniphora, the rarest tortoise on the earth. An investigation revealed the

Galapagos hosts nursery for new species of giant tortoise PUERTO AYORA, Ecuador: Crowded under a rock in the Galapagos archipelago, the baby tortoises wait for the sun to go down to leave their shelter. Nothing disturbs these eastern Santa Cruz tortoises (scientific name Chelondis donfaustoi), which were determined just two years ago to be a new species native to the Ecuadoran islands that inspired Charles

New study sheds light on the brain evolution of turtles A new study led by the University of Birmingham shows that the brain of turtles has evolved slowly, but constantly over the last 210 million years, eventually reaching a variety in form and complexity, which rivals that of other animal groups. The study also discovered that the first turtles with a fully formed shell were

Successful Hatching Of World’s Largest Chelonian A Noteworthy Australasian Accomplishment Aukland Zoo certainly has cause for celebration this year. They are only the second Australasian zoo to successfully reproduce Chelonoidis nigra, after years of failed attempts to breed their pair of mature specimens. Curator of ectotherms and birds Richard Gibson attributes part of this success to the introduction of a second male, which may have