Similajau National Park Releases 49 Green Turtle Hatchlings

BINTULU (Sarawak, Malaysia) Dec 14 (Bernama) -- The Similajau National Park (SNP) near here has released 49 green turtle (Chelonia mydas) hatchlings into the sea off its beaches so far this month. A statement from the Sarawak Forestry Corporation(SFC) said the 45 hatchlings were released Tuesday and another four much earlier on December 5. It said they were hatched from two clutches of eggs totaling 134 dug out from the beach and transplanted into its turtle hatchery. The hatchery is under the biodiversity, environmental and conservation or BEACON project, which is a conservation collaboration between the SFC and Petronas MLNG. "SNP has recorded six green turtle nests at its beaches this year yielding 490 eggs which were all transplanted to the hatchery,” it said. The SFC regarded the return of the turtles to the beaches after a lapse of over five years as one of the successes of the BEACON project. The last time they were found nesting there was in July 2010. The statement said in 2015, 525 eggs were collected to produce 277 hatchlings, which were eventually released into the sea. The BEACON project had planted a total of 1,500 units of reef balls off the coast of SNP since 2013. "They are to serve as a passive protection and impediment against trawling activities which are detrimental to the turtles. "The presence of the reef balls in the waters of the park have greatly reduced trawling activities close by its shores thus providing protection and encouraging the return of turtles to its beaches,” it added. --BERNAMA