·
The hawksbill sea turtle that was found last May with a hook
in its throat recovered completely and was reinserted to its natural habitat on
July 22
In Riviera Nayarit luxury is our nature,
and we’re constantly protecting it, as it represents one of the greatest assets
of our destination. On July 22, the turtle called Jaltemba was released after
being rescued last May by Red Tortuguera A.C. The turtle was originally found
around Jaltamba Bay (and named accordingly) with a hook stuck in its throat.
Jaltemba underwent a
complicated surgery to remove the hook, recovered well and gained weight, so specialists
decided that it could be reinserted to its habitat, and the turtle was released
at the beach in Rincon de Guayabitos, close to the location where it was
rescued.
“It has been very
important to rescue and reintegrate Jaltemba to its habitat, not only because the
hawksbill sea turtle is the most endangered species among the turtles that come
to our region, but also because this case has had a great impact on society and
the media, and this helped us raise public awareness about the importance
preserving this species”, said Vicente Peña, field technician of Red Tortuguera
A.C.
In fact, Jaltemba was
released with a satellite tracking chip that will reveal more about its
location and habits, something essential to learn more about hawksbill turtles,
in order to create strategies for its preservation.
Olive ridely turtles
are the common visitors to Riviera Nayarit. There are preservation efforts along
the coast from all sectors of society, which have been generating results, and
the number of nests has increased significantly. However, hawksbill turtles
like Jaltemba are not common, and therefore the especial importance of this
rescue.
According to Eastern
Pacific Hawksbill Initiative (ICAPO), the protection of the hawksbill turtle in
the Pacific is one of the conservation issues that have become a priority,
because this is one of the most endangered species in the region: it’s estimated
that only a couple hundred turtles nest along the entire coast.
This low level of nests
indicates that there is very little likelihood that the species will survive we
don’t carry out coordinated actions for their preservation. Protecting their
eggs, fostering hatching, generating biological information on the species and
protecting marine habitats are part of our strategy.
Vicente Peña reported
that this year there have been 20 registered nests in Punta Mita. Even though the
nesting season is just beginning, there are two additional new nests whose
characteristics suggest that they’re probably hawksbill nests.
These numbers are
encouraging if we consider that in all of 2011 there were only 4 nests, and
there were none in 2010, according to Tortuguera Red AC. The organization also
said that Punta Mita is one of only two nesting grounds for hawksbill turtles
in the entire Mexican Pacific.
The Convention and Visitors
Bureau (CVB) of Riviera Nayarit wishes to thank and congratulates Vicente Peña
and the entire team of Red Tortuguera AC, as well as Catherine E. Hart for
coordinating the rescue efforts of Jaltemba. We also thank Alan Zavala, who
arranged to receive Jaltemba diligently in the research center, and Paula Claussell,
Jesus Pineda, Roy Quintero, Irving Gonzalez and Alonso Aguirre, and all the
staff and students of CIIDIR, who offered their time and efforts to save this
turtle.
No comments:
Post a Comment