July 2016

Simon, N. 2010 (September 1). Greenie goes home. The Hindu. chennai/Two-Stranded-Green-Turtles-Rehabilitated-Released-
Retrieved from: http://www.thehindu.com/features/metroplus/ into-Sea/2016/04/24/article3397245.ece.
nxg/greenie-goes-home/article607237.ece.
Swaminathan, A. & S. John. 2011. Pseudonesting behaviour by
Special Correspondent. 2011 (March 11). Sea turtles rescued. the olive ridley sea turtle Lepidochelys olivacea (Eschscholtz,
The Hindu. Retrieved from: http://www.thehindu.com/ 1829) during mass nesting at Rushikulya, Orissa, India.
todays-paper/tp-national/tp-tamilnadu/sea-turtles-rescued/ Herpetology Notes 4: 225-227.
article1528211.ece.
Simon, N. 2010 (September 1). Greenie goes home. The Hindu.
Special Correspondent. 2016 (April 24). Two stranded green Retrieved from: http://www.thehindu.com/features/metroplus/
turtles rehabilitated, released into sea. The New Indian Express. nxg/greenie-goes-home/article607237.ece.
Retrieved from: http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/

SEA TURTLE CONSERVATION AND ALLIED ACTIVITIES WITH

COMMUNITY PARTICIPATION AT VELAS, MAHARASHTRA,
INDIA
PRIYANKA R. PAWAR
Maharashtra State Biodiversity Board, Wanwadi, Pune, Maharashtra, India

[email protected]

INTRODUCTION villagers joined the initiative in 2006 which led to the

formation of Kasav Mitra Mandal (KMM), a local club
Velas (17.9588°N, 73.0361°E) is a tiny hamlet in the of individuals supporting the conservation in Velas. At
Mandangad taluka, Ratnagiri District of Maharashtra, present, the local governing body i.e. the Grampanchayat
India. Velas has an isolated 3km stretch of coast-line along with KMM the Forest Department, Joint Forest
dotted by Casuarina trees facing the Arabian Sea. A small Management Committee (JFM) and Biodiversity
stream passes through the village to the beach surrounded Management Committee (BMC) work together for
by dense mangroves which flood in the rainy season. the conservation programme “The Turtle Festival”.

The secluded, wide beach with offshore sand bars is The members of KMM provide homestay arrangements
suitable for olive ridley turtle nesting. The sea turtle for visitors to the Turtle Festival. Nineteen families
breeding and nesting season in Maharashtra lasts initially extended their traditional hospitality wherein
from November to April. In Velas, nesting usually they serve home-cooked Maharashtrian style food
occurs from December to the first week of April to the visiting tourists. However, the number has
and accounts for 40% of the nesting in Maharashtra. increased to 31 in recent times and the number is
expected to increase to 34 in the next year or so.
SNM AND THE TURTLE FESTIVAL Members of the KMM contribute 10% of the total
income to the SNM turtle conservation programme.
Sahyadri Nisarga Mitra (SNM), a non-governmental
organization, initiated marine turtle conservation One of the major fundamental activities during the
along the coast of Maharashtra with the involvement Turtle Festival is to check the local hatchery and release
of the local community. Its first onsite olive ridley emerged hatchlings into the sea. The volunteers of
conservation efforts were carried out in 2002 at KMM check for hatchlings at 7am and 6pm and new
Velas (Katdare & Mone, 2003) and now encompasses hatchlings are released for tourists to observe. Other
36 beaches and 12 villages of Ratnagiri district. activities KMM hosts during the festival are visits to
a variety of birdwatching sites in and around Velas
The Turtle Festival was first organised by SNM in via a bullock cart safari. They also project a screening
2006 and has occurred every year since then. Local on turtle conservation during the festival followed

11
I n d i a n O c e a n Tu r t l e N e w s l e t t e r N o . 2 4

by an interactive session with Mr Mohan Upadhye. (Katdare & Mone, 2003) is established at Velas, and all the
nests laid on its 3km beach are collected and placed in hand-
The members who actively participate in the Turtle dug egg chambers to protect them from tidal erosion and
Festival include self-help groups that sell home- predators. A galvanised iron mesh fixed to wooden poles
made products, Mahila Bachat Gats, local villagers fencing surrounds the hatchery to prevent depredation of
and volunteers, all of which are a part of KMM. The nests. Wooden batons are numbered to identify individual
Turtle Festival lasts from January to April in which nests, which are covered with a wicker basket and a
the first three months are considered to be the peak piece of jute to reduce predation of hatchlings by birds.
season for egg hatching. The Turtle Festival has a
positive impact on the local community as it facilitates In the 2002/03 nesting season when the conservation
new source of income for the local community. programme began at Velas, SNM relocated the 50 olive
ridley turtle nests laid on the beach to the hatchery (Figure
The Turtle Festival is a purely a conservation effort by 1). The number of nests has fluctuated since, with a low of
the local community. The primary goal of the effort is 8 in 2014/15. As female olive ridley turtles reach maturity
to protect the olive ridley eggs from predation and other at about 13 years ranging from 10 to 18 years (Zug et al,
natural threats to their survival. The Turtle Festival also 2006), SNM hopes that nesting numbers will soon reflect
focuses on the active participation of the local community the conservation effort of the past years. The trend of
and visiting tourists in conservation of sea turtles and number of eggs produced (Figure 2) follows that of number
to increase the livelihood sources of local villagers of nests laid. Emergence success also fluctuates over time,
with a high of 64% in 2015/16 and low of 30% in 2006/07.
EX-SITU TURTLE CONSERVATION METHOD
PRACTISED AT VELAS BEACH RULES AND RESTRICTIONS PRACTISED AT
VELAS
SNM volunteers patrol the beach throughout day and
night during the nesting season to locate newly laid nests Restricted facilities for tourists: To promote the
and supervise nests in the hatchery. A hatchery of 8m x 3m conservation of sea turtles, the use of tents, umbrellas,

Figure 1. Number of olive ridley turtle nests from 2002-2016 at Velas Beach. (Source: SNM)

12
 July 2016

Figure 2. Eggs incubated and hatchlings released from hatcheries at Velas Beach 2002-2016. Note: 2005/06 data is not
available. (Source: SNM and Forest Department).

canopies, beach chairs, sun beds at the beach is for finding a route to the sea; they orient using the
restricted as such structures can stop female turtle from brightness of open seaward horizon and the illumination
reaching suitable nesting location and/or effect the appearing from the reflection of stars and the moonlight
nest temperature due to shading (Shenoy et al., 2011). on water. Artificial lighting on the beach and adjacent
There are no accommodation facilities on the beach. habitat create results in poor orientation and the same
can happen to adult female sea turtles as they try to
Also, the local governing body (Gram Panchayat) return back to the sea after nesting. Disoriented turtles
has recently prohibited the use and sale of thermocol still on land during the day may die by dehydration,
plates and cups and is planning to ban the use of all predators, exhaustion and other such similar factors
plastic materials on the beach in the upcoming year. (Shenoy et al., 2011). Thus, it is imperative to bar any
sort of artificial lighting on the beach in order to facilitate
Informal fishing ban: Before the conservation programme an efficient conservation programme. Keeping this in
was in action, local fishermen used to fish during the mind, SNM jointly with the Forest Department and
nesting season,with purse seine, trawl, gill and cast nets Gram Panchayat of Velas has taken crucial steps to make
in addition to hook and line gear. Turtles were entangled, sure that no artificial lighting is installed on the entire
drowned, bruised, killed or maimed after interactions beach and on the approach road as well. A ‘No coastal
with such gear and this was duly noted by SNM, resulting illumination, water or sand sports’ resolution was passed
in an informal ban on fishing during the nesting season. in 2012-13 to help create an undisturbed habitat for the
The fishermen are provided with an alternative location incubation of turtle nests and hatching of baby turtles.
(Harnai) to fish at a distance from the nesting beach.
No water sports: The boats used for water sports
No coastal illumination: Artificial light poses a threat are mainly propeller driven and may injure turtles
to the turtles which rely solely on their visual stimuli who visit the beach for nesting purposes. The loud

13
I n d i a n O c e a n Tu r t l e N e w s l e t t e r N o . 2 4

noise of the propeller under the sea may deter the sea turtle nests, but the trees also provide shelter to
turtles from arriving at the beach. Hence, no water animals like jackals and hyenas which feed on sea
sports are allowed during the turtle nesting season. turtle eggs. Mohanty (2002) reported that formation
of sand dunes is greatly hindered due to Casuarina
No sand sports allowed: Sports like sand biking, plantations, which ultimately leads to coastal erosion
paragliding, and beach volleyball causes sand to become and in some cases total elimination of dunes (e.g. Orissa
compacted which causes difficulty for the sea turtles coast). Awale and Phillott (2014) also give valuable
when nesting. Sea turtles lay their eggs at an optimal insights on the devastating effects of Casuarina spp.
depth by digging a nest with their hind limbs, so hard on factors including beach ecology, nesting habitat,
sand requires more effort to dig which may result in and nest temperature leading to changes in the sex
reduced depth of excavation and sub-optimal incubation ratio of hatchling sea turtles. They suggest beaches
conditions. Sand sports may also uproots and-binding be vegetated with native plant species such as neem,
plants and result in sand erosion, and so are banned. coconut, banyan, fig, jamun, bakul, peepal etc.
instead of tropical plant species like Casuarina spp.
Although the conservation programme is at its peak and
every possible effort is taken to conserve and save as many 5. Fishing and other vessels: A resolution of the
turtles as possible, last year there were a total of eight fishing ban should be passed in order to prevent
turtles found dead due to a variety of reasons which could entanglement of female sea turtles in fishing nets
be avoided if the following recommendations are adopted. during the breeding and nesting season, and the use
of turtle excluder devices (TEDs) should be strictly
Recommendations: monitored and regulated. Barges from coal-based
mining activities should follow routes that do not
1. Tag sea turtles: Permanently marking individuals disturb nesting females coming to the shore.
with flipper tags will give useful insight into the
biology of sea turtles nesting at Velas, including ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
reproductive biology, growth, population size, and
migration. In conjunction with more extensive field I express my sincere appreciation and gratitude to the
President of SNM Mr Bhau Katdare for providing insight
surveys, data to determine the number of clutches
and expertise that greatly assisted this article. I’d like to
per season and the estimated number of nesting thank Mr Mohan Upadhye for his invaluable contribution
females per season could more easily be collected to this article. I thank, Mr Yogiraj Rathod, for data and
fact providing. I’m also indebted to Dr Sujit Sundaram
2. Carry out field survey seasonally on nesting for his excellent guidance and help in numerous ways. I
beach habitat: Field survey on nesting beach gratefully acknowledge Dr Pradnya Sawant for offering
habitat could help us understand the factors that constructive suggestions, comments and sound advice.
affect turtle nesting success, nest hatching success Finally, I must thank, Swapnil Tandel, Bala Mhadgut,
and hatchling emergence success and also enable Dhanashree Bagade and my brother Piyush Pawar for their
specific recommendations to safeguard olive ridley invaluable advice, help and continuous encouragement.
turtles and their habitat (Anonymous, 1997). Literature cited:

3. Monitor hatchling sex ratio: There are no previous Anonymous. 1997. Survey on ongoing depletion of olive ridley
records of hatchling sex ratios at this location hence turtle rookery in Rushikulya mouth in Ganjam district, Orissa.
it is highly recommended to do so. Calculating Cuttack, Orissa, India: Project Swarajya.
hatchling sex ratios can help determine potential
Awale, D. & A.D. Phillott. 2014. A review of the adverse effects
dynamics in reproductive ecology and reasons of of Casuarina spp. on coastal ecosystems and sea turtle nesting
fluctuating numbers of nesting females (Wibbels, beaches, Indian Ocean Turtle Newsletter 19: 15-19.
2003) as well as provide a baseline against which to
compare the outcomes of management techniques Godfrey, M. & N. Mrosovsky. 1999. Estimating hatchling
(e.g. hatcheries) which may influence sea turtle sex ratio. In: Research and Management Techniques for the
populations (Godfrey & Mrosovsky, 1999). Conservation of Sea Turtles. (eds. Eckert, K.L., K.A. Bjorndal,
F.A. Abreu-Grobois & M. Donnelly). Pp. 136-139. IUCN/SSC
4. Replace Casuarina trees: Pandav et al. (2006) found Marine Turtle Specialist Group Publication No. 4. Washington,
DC, USA.
that Casuarina tree plantations are responsible for
changes in the beach terrain with their permeated Katdare, V. & R. Mone. 2003. Turtle conservation in Konkan,
roots and litter which may impact the success of Maharashtra. Kachhapa 9: 7-8.

14
 July 2016

Mithawala, R. 2016. Turtle village to become biodiversity conservation. Dakshin Foundation, Bangalore and Madras
heritage site. The Times of India. City, 10 July 2016, timesofindia. Crocodile Bank Trust, Mamallapuram, India. 148 pages.
indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/Turtle-village-to-become-
biodiversity-heritage-site/articleshow/53133711.cms. Wibbels, T. 2003. Critical approaches to sex determination in
sea turtles. In: The Biology of Sea Turtles Vol. II. (eds. Lutz P.L.,
Mohanty, B. 2002. Casuarina forests ruin turtle nesting beaches J.A. Musick & J. Wyneken). Pp. 103-133. CRC Press, Boca Raton
in Orissa. Kachhapa 7: 20-21. FL, USA.

Pandav, B., B.C. Choudhury & C.S. Kar. 2006. Sea turtle nesting Zug, G.R., M. Chaloupka & G.H. Balazs. 2006. Age and growth
habitats on the coast of Orissa. In: Marine Turtles of the Indian in olive ridley sea turtles (Lepidochelys olivacea) from the north-
Subcontinent. (eds. Shanker, K. & B.C. Choudhury). Pp. 88–106. central Pacific: A skeletochronological analysis. Marine Ecology
Universities Press, Hyderabad, India. 26: 1-8.

Shenoy, S., T. Berlie and K. Shanker. 2011. Sea turtles of

India. A comprehensive field guide to research, monitoring and

DIARY OF THE SSTCN CHENNAI TURTLE SEASON JANUARY –

APRIL 2016
V.ARUN
Students’ Sea Turtle Conservation Network, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India

[email protected]

INTRODUCTION In our northern stretch of beach extending from Adyar

River Creek to the Cooum River, popularly referred as
As the Student Sea Turtle Conservation Network the Marina Beach, we found around 110 nests where
(SSTCN) looks back at the season just gone by in we usually find between 150 and 180. In all, we ended
Chennai, Tamil Nadu, the primary feeling is that it the season with 175 nests, 75 fewer than last year and 73
was a muted one and also shorter as it ended a couple less than 2014. All the nests were relocated, 101 into the
of weeks earlier than usual. In comparison, the last few two SSTCN hatcheries and 74 to the Forest Department
years had been big, both in terms of the number of nests hatchery. The two SSTCN hatcheries are set up on either
and in the number of dead turtles encountered! In one side of the Adyar estuary, one to cover Besant Nagar
of our early walks this season, a fisherman told us that stretch and the other to cover the Marina beach. The
they were spotting many dead turtles in the sea and Forest Department hatchery was set up about 50 meters
it would not be long before these washed ashore. We from the SSTCN hatchery on the Besant Nagar side.
counted more than 300 stranded and dead turtles in the
2015 season and hoped not to experience another such Working with the Forest Department
year. Fortunately, we encountered only 85 dead adult
turtles this season. While it is still a big number, it was The Forest Department and SSTCN have been co-
only a third of the number of dead turtles found in the patrolling these beaches for the past two years. We tried
last few years. However, we also found far fewer nests, patrolling at different hours of the night to maximise
suggesting fewer nesting olive ridley turtles than in 2015. nest collection last year, but that resulted in confusion
between the two organisations. This year we divided
Number of nests the northern stretch into two parts and each did one
stretch with the other providing back up support
We have been averaging around 100 nests per season when required. This arrangement worked better as
in our southern stretch of beach, extending from there was no confusion or overlap in terms of time.
Neelangarai to the Adyar River, close to the Besant Nagar The Forest Department hatchery was built close to
beach. This year we found only 51 nests on this stretch. ours so that volunteers and care takers could monitor

15