Sea turtles of Selaut Besar Island
Securing the sea turtle nesting populations of Selaut Besar Island, Aceh Province, Indonesia
Although sea turtles have been strictly protected since 1990 by Indonesian law the population remains threatened with extinction due to poaching, fishing and habitat loss. With this project the Turtle Foundation Germany wants to protect the population of sea turtles by developing a ranger program for nesting beaches including a monitoring program with comprehensive data collection. Initial investigations have already shown that the nesting sites of the Indonesian island of Selaut Besar are of international importance. This project addresses the protection of the Leatherback Turtle, the Green Turtle and the Olive Ridley Turtle. Through the activities, the foundation wants to create an important contribution to the preservation of the marine biodiversity in Indonesia in general.
Overall goals of the project are:
Promoting the increase of sea turtle populations by patrolling the beaches and protecting nesting sites
Surveying nesting activities based on three species of sea turtles
Developing a mapping program for leatherback turtles
Training local rangers according to international standards
Promoting awareness of nature conservation
Activities planned within 2021:
Hiring and training of a local project coordinator
Development of a patrol system in cooperation with locally hired and trained staff
Implementing a regular cleaning system of the beaches
Administration of a tagging-database by the project coordinator
Development of a standard operating procedure for identification and tagging of female leatherback turtles
Regular evaluation of activities through project reports
Monthly exchange of knowledge through online workshops and meetings on-site
Important Project partner are: Yayasan Penyu Indonesia (YPI) an Ecosystem Impact Foundation (EI)
Project information
Species:
Leatherback sea turtle(Dermochelys coriacea), Green Turtle (Chelonia mydasi), Olive Ridley Turtle (Lepidochelys olivacea)
Region: Sumatra, Indonesia
Implementing partner: Turtle Foundation Germany
Project duration: October 2020 - September 2021
