More than 400 endangered sea turtles have washed ashore on India’s east coast in an event not witnessed in over two decades.
Olive Ridley turtles travel thousands of miles for ideal nesting conditions on India’s coast, near the city of Chennai, but the species has been threatened for years by fishing nets as well as a reduction in the number of available nesting beaches.
Between 100 to 200 turtles usually die in a typical year on the stretch of coast — there have been well over that number in little more than two weeks, said Shravan Krishnan, a volunteer with Chennai-based Students Sea Turtles Conservation Network.
Theres is also concern about the low number of turtles nesting on shore.
Krishnan and other conservationists walk along the city’s beaches at night to collect and transfer turtle nests so the eggs are not vandalised by beach-goers or eaten by dogs. “We have found only four nests so far, which isreally worrying,” he said.
The turtle deaths are the highest number officials have seen since 2014 when more than 900 Olive Ridley turtles were found dead along the southern Indian coast. Experts say the deaths are most likely due to large fishing nets that trawl the ocean floor.
Manish Meena, the city’s wildlife warden, said groups have been actively trying to create awareness among fishers to release turtles that might get caught in nets and have also asked the coastguard to monitor fishing activity.
A local government order was implemented in 2016 to stop trawl boats from casting giant nets that sweep up everything on the ocean floor from getting within five nautical miles of the coastline during turtle nesting season. The law also mandates devices known as turtle excluder devices, that can help turtles escape nets.
Shantanu Kalambi, a marine veterinary specialist with the conservation organization ReefWatch, said that when the trawlers catch turtles, they are unable to surface for air at regular intervals. And the devices that help turtles escape aren’t used, because they reduce fishers’ catch, environmentalists said.
Olive ridley turtles are considered a vulnerable species as they lose their habitats, are subject to marine pollution and can get trapped in fishing nets.
As their eggs need two months to hatch — like most sea turtle species — they’re also threatened by increased land activity on beaches and coastlines, warmer temperatures and light pollution that can disorient infant turtles.
More than 500,000 turtles nest every year in beaches further up India’s east coast in Odisha state — a mass nesting phenomenon that turtle conservationists call Arribada. Only one in about 1,000 turtle hatchlings survive to adulthood.
The turtles are important in maintaining the healthy balance of the marine ecosystem. One of their main food sources is jellyfish, and an abundance of jellyfish could have adverse consequences for marine ecosystems.
