We ended our first day in Tioman with an after-dinner visit to the TAT turtle sanctuary located at Teluk Sri Intan, between Berjaya Tioman and Kampung Paya. The HRH Sultan of Pahang, Sultan Ahmad Shah Ibni Almarhum Sultan Abu Bakar, set up the sanctuary which was officially opened in May 2009, to oversee the protection and conservation of marine turtles at Tioman. The HRH graciously agreed to name the watch group TAT Turtle Sanctuary after his youngest son Tengku Arif Temenggong (TAT).

A batch of green turtle eggs at the sanctuary had hatched earlier and we were invited to watch them being released back into the sea. Michael drove us on what appeared to be a dirt track, illuminated only by the headlights from the vehicle. When we approached the sanctuary, he turned off the vehicle lights so as not to disturb any nesting turtles. A lone wooden building occupied by the caretaker and a fenced-off hatchery next to it were the only visible structures on an otherwise deserted beach. Each batch of freshly laid eggs were collected from the original nesting site, transferred to the protected hatchery and re-buried in the sand. A chicken-wire fence was then erected around it (to prevent hatchlings from wandering out) and details marked on a post.

The batch of baby green turtles were already in a tub. The caretaker removed the weaker hatchlings and put them aside. Hopefully they would be strong enough for release the next evening or so. We brought the tub to the beach, illuminated only by the moonlit and starlit evening sky. Turtle hatchlings naturally emerge from the nest at night and return to the sea in order to avoid natural day-time predators. They also instinctively head towards points of light. Scientists believe that the reflection of the stars and moon in the sea guide the hatchlings in the right direction. That is why turtles usually choose the darkest part of the beach to nest, away from artificial lighting. This is also the reason why human observers are asked not to use torchlights or camera flash. We took the baby turtles out and placed them gently on the beach. Instinctively, each one headed off towards the water. As they disappeared into the water, I felt a sense of relief that thanks to the efforts of TAT Turtle Sanctuary and others like it, at least all these young turtles made it into the water without being eaten by predatory animals or consumed by humans as eggs. While the chances of surviving the perilous journey to adulthood is slim, with only about one in every ten thousand hatchlings surviving to return to nest, it was worthwhile to be able to give them that extra helping hand. The rest is up to nature.

Source from Redang.org: Pulau Tioman 2010 Trip Diary

PULAU TIOMAN: Eva, the hawksbill turtle (penyu karah) that had a fishing hook lodged in its throat, was released back into the sea yesterday.

The 30-year-old female reptile was released at the Berjaya Tioman Resort beach yesterday.

Tengku Arif Bendahara Turtle Sanctuary co-founder Datin Seri Rowena Baker, who coordinated the effort to save the turtle, said the animal had a chance of healing naturally in the sea.

A worker at the resort found the turtle two weeks ago with a fishing line in its mouth while diving nearby.

It was released after resort staff failed to remove the hook but was recaptured after Universiti Putra Malaysia aquatic veterinarian, Associate Professor Dr Hassan Mohd Daud, agreed to step in.

He flew in and examined the turtle but decided not to do anything further as the hook was lodged 30cm inside its throat.

It was the second turtle rescued by the sanctuary since its inception four years ago.

The first was a green turtle (penyu agar) which died of its injuries on Sunday, including a cracked shell after being hit by a speedboat.

Rowena said the authorities should do something to help injured marine wildlife like turtles and the dugong.

“There are many islands, including Pulau Tioman, which depend on eco-tourism.

“It will be great if the authorities coordinate their efforts to help protect marine wildlife,” she said, adding that the sanctuary planned to set up a clinic to help treat injured marine wildlife.

“This is our long-term goal. It will be costly but we aim to raise enough funds.

“By having a clinic, we also hope to expand cooperation with Dr Hassan and UPM by inviting their veterinary students here to gain experience.”

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Source from NST: Marine wildlife clinic plan

It flew in an aquatic veterinarian from Universiti Putra Malaysia to treat the injured reptile, believed to be a 30-year-old female.

Sanctuary co-founder Datin Seri Rowena Baker said the turtle, with a fishing line in its mouth, was found by a Berjaya Tioman Resort staff during a diving expedition 10 days ago.

Resort staff tried to clear the line but it was tied to a fishing hook lodged deep inside the animal’s throat.

“They kept the turtle, which they called Eva, for two days before deciding to release it back into the sea after failing to remove the hook,” Baker said.

“Luckily, my vet suggested that I contact a marine animal expert at UPM and I promptly called Associate Professor Dr Hassan Mohd Daud for advice.

“He was kind enough to offer to treat the animal provided we could find it again. Luckily, the same person who found the turtle managed to capture it for treatment on Friday.”

She said the expert and an assistant were flown into the island yesterday morning and taken to the resort where Eva was kept in a large container.

The examination could not be conducted immediately as it took some time to coax Eva to fall asleep despite being injected with 15ml of sedative.

After more than an hour, Dr Hassan inserted an endoscopy camera into Eva’s throat and found the hook deeply lodged 30cm inside.

“The good news is that there are no lacerations, bleeding or ulcers on the throat and the hook appears to be made of carbon as it is dark coloured.

“If it goes into the stomach, hopefully the (stomach) acid will help dissolve it naturally,” Dr Hassan said before injecting Eva a dose of antibiotics and vitamins.

Dr Hassan, who has 20 years’ experience treating aquatic animals including turtles in captivity, said it was his first time handling wild turtles.

Rowena said they planned to release the turtle back into the sea as soon as possible to allow it to heal.

Eva also became the first turtle in Tioman to be tagged by a team from the Pahang Fisheries Department from Kuantan.

It is learnt that the department plans to tag all the turtles that land on the island to lay eggs.

The department currently tags turtles that land in Cherating.

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Source from NST: Turtle park hooks up with vet to save Eva

At the same time, turtle eggs are being openly sold in Pahang and Terengganu, especially at Pasar Payang in Kuala Terengganu, once famed for abundant leatherback turtle landings.

Rowena cringes at the statistics.

A survey by the World Wide Fund for Nature Malaysia produces a troubling picture — 422,000 green turtle eggs have been traded last year.

The potential loss of adult turtles over the next 20 years is 422. By then, only six adult turtles, of the 6,000 released into the sea by the Pahang sanctuary so far, are likely to return to shore.

Rowena blames an old loophole.

The 2-year-old National Plan of Action for Conservation and Management of Sea Turtles imposes a ban on commercial sale and consumption of turtle eggs. In reality, the ban cannot be enforced because the Federal Constitution accords the control of turtles and its products to the state governments.

“It’s supposed to be Malaysia boleh, not Malaysia divided,” says an exasperated Rowena.

She insists that it is not too late for the Pahang government to work with the state Fisheries Department to make saving turtles a priority.

The magnitude of constraints inflicted on the environment by “technical glitches” extends to islands and mangrove forests.

The clearing of mangrove trees reportedly continues in parts of Kuala Selangor, despite it being classified an environmentally sensitive area (ESA).

“The Temengor rainforest in Perak is being logged as we speak,” according to Malaysian Nature Society’s head of communications Andrew Sebastian, “although the site is an ESA 1, which means it is strictly off-limits.”

Then, there are the islands. They come under the jurisdiction of state governments while the Marine Park Department, a federal agency, has jurisdiction two nautical miles around the islands.

While the Marine Park Department may want to safeguard designated islands, like limiting the number of new resorts, they cannot stop it.

Summing up, Sebastian says: “Are we on the same page here?”

The Federal Government has taken remedial measures, among others, by setting up the National Forestry Council, National Biodiversity and Bio technology Council and the National Land Council to look into environmental issues and offer solutions.

“How often these councils meet and whether the respective states follow the decisions taken by the councils is another matter,” says United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)’s energy and environment programme manager Hari Ramalu Ragavan.

Conservationists, too, have long thought of potential tangible solutions. Yet, the Malaysian experience has thrown up an ambiguity.

The Malaysian formula is one of decentralisation, which has worked elsewhere. In fact, the UNDP and World Bank encourage decentralisation. Knowledge of local environment is supposed to yield a more efficient protection.

“What went wrong?” asks Hari.

Lack of funds precludes effective protection by state governments of sites like the Belum rainforest, reportedly the target of poaching and illegal wildlife trade.

“Some of the sites the Federal Government wants to save generate revenues for the states,” says Elizabeth John, senior communications officer of Traffic, a wildlife trade monitoring network.

Which is why UNDP encourages “payment for ecosystem services”, where the economic values of an ecosystem’s resources are identified for compensation, John adds.

The conflicts, notwithstanding, the Hulu Perak district office set up a multiagency task force to tackle wildlife poaching and forest encroachment, a problem that has long plagued the state’s forests, particular the Belum-Temengor Forest Complex.

It brings together enforcement officers from federal agencies like the police, Customs, Wildlife and Fisheries Departments as well as officers from the Royal Belum Forest Reserve.

Recently, the task force seized two tonnes of agar and 31 kelah, even before it was made official.

Previously, poachers and smugglers had darted past all the demarcations.

State park rangers patrolled the Royal Belum Forest Reserve; the army watched over the reserve’s borders with Thailand; a mishmash of agencies patrolled the roads and state lands separating Belum and Temengor; and the Forestry Department was largely concerned about the Temengor Forest Reserve.

“Now, we are seeing the positive impact of cooperation. So, where there is a will, there is a way,” John says.

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Source from NST: There’s loophole, no coordination

ROMPIN: A green turtle (penyu agar) was left battling for its life after it was believed to have been hit by a speedboat in the waters off Pulau Tioman yesterday.

The young turtle, which had a deep cut and a huge crack on its shell, was rushed by a group of tourists to the Pulau Tioman Marine Park Centre for treatment.

Tengku Arif Temenggong (TAT) Turtle Sanctuary co-founder Datin Seri Rowena Baker said tourists had spotted the injured turtle near the island about noon and taken it to the marine park.

She said it was a heart-wrenching moment for the staff at the marine park when they spotted the huge gash, about 16cm long and 10cm wide, across the turtle’s shell, which is believed to have been caused by a boat propeller.

“It was very ill and in a debilitated state. The wound was rotten and there were other living organisms inside the wound,” she said.

“Based on the severe wounds, the turtle could have been injured more than a week earlier.”

Rowena said the staff were trying their best to treat the wounds but she did not rule out the possibility that they would be forced to put the turtle to sleep.

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Source from NST: Injured turtle fighting for its life

ENVIRONMENTALISTS and non-governmental organisations are calling for the Federal Constitution to be amended to better safeguard the environment.

World Wide Fund for Nature Malaysia policy coordinator Preetha Sankar says such a move is needed to save the rapidly dwindling turtle population as it will allow for the development of uniformed laws.

Preetha admits that the difference in state and federal policies are putting conservation works “in trouble”, with the laws in various states deemed ineffective and inadequate.

Turtle Conservation Centre co-founder Professor Dr Chan Eng Heng, who wrote a supporting letter for WWF Malaysia, says conservation work will be easier if the techniques are streamlined.

“Some states are not really carrying out the turtle conservation work seriously due to the lack of knowledge at the state level,” she adds.

The Centre for Environment, Technology and Development Malaysia’s chairman, Gurmit Singh, says as insufficient funds force state governments to fell trees as an alternative revenue resource, the Federal Constitution should consider allowing the state governments to have access to tax collections to help ease their financial burden.

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Source from NST: Time for uniform policies in states

This time, Puteri Rantau Abang which was identified through a marking on its shell and flipper when it returned on July 6, will carry on its back a transmitter to provide crucial data on its feeding ground and migration pattern.

Malaysian Fisheries Department director-general Datuk Ahamad Sabki Mahmood, who was present during Puteri’s release here, said the RM7,000 transmitter would allow researchers to define the turtle’s travel pattern and other data.

Puteri Rantau Abang, weighing 500kg and measuring 1.51m in length and 1.16m-wide is expected to travel across the Asia-Pacific region before returning home.

“We expect Puteri Rantau Abang to head for Vietnam and Japan before heading to the Pacific,” he said, adding that the turtle could also enter Indonesian waters, and to the Solomon Islands, Australia and New Zealand before returning to Terengganu.

Ahamad Sabki added that Puteri Rantau Abang’s return showed that Rantau Abang was being made a turtle nesting ground again after a dry spell in the 1980s.

“It is a miracle that leatherback turtles are making a comeback to this area,” he said, adding that the next speculated period for nesting is between Aug 15 and 20.

Source from The Star: Turtle to be tracked around the world

TAT Turtle Sanctuary co-founder Datin Seri Rowena Baker attributed the physical defects to sea pollution.

“We need to push for greater awareness for the preservation of turtles and of their natural habitat,” she said.

Last week, a blind green turtle from the centre went missing for three days, allegedly released into the ocean by irresponsible intruders. She was found by passing kayakers about 500m south of where she was released.

Affectionately named Jo, the turtle was born without eyes and had been rehabilitated at TAT and under the care of volunteers since young.

“She would have suffered a quick death in the wild due to her lack of sight,” Baker said of four-year-old Jo, which is the only turtle to have been successfully raised at the centre.

The 20kg green turtle has since become the mascot for turtle conservation at Pulau Tioman and attracts about 10,000 visitors every year.

In a separate incident on Tuesday, another turtle – this time a Hawksbill – was badly injured in the throat after it swallowed a fishing hook at sea.

Baker, who was part of the rescue team, said the turtle has been unable to swallow food since.

“The turtle is obviously under tremendous stress,” she said of its ordeal, and added that it would usually swim alongside divers at the east coast island.

Source from The Star: Turtles born with deformities

Jo, who was born without eyes, went missing on Aug 2. It is believed that intruders had released her from the Tengku Arif Temenggong (TAT) Turtle Sanctuary into the ocean.

Fortunately for her, kayaking instructors spotted the 20kg turtle swimming in circles some 500m south from her site.

“The first thing that ran through my mind was why would anyone want to do this? Maybe those who released Jo probably thought they were doing her a favour by releasing her back into the wild.

“But a blind turtle is unable to visually locate food in the wild. She would eventually starve to death,” TAT co-founder Datin Seri Rowena Baker said yesterday, adding that she sought help from villagers and government agencies to help locate Jo, and even sent an SOS on her Facebook.

Baker said they were now providing a larger and deeper tank, and tightening security at their project site.

Hatched at the sanctuary in 2006, Jo thrived under the care of John Amos and his wife, Zana, who “adopted” her.

She was later placed under the care of two TAT volunteers, Charlie Fisher and Tom Weubbens.

Now a healthy four-your old, Jo captured the hearts of the locals and quickly became a celebrity as well as a mascot for turtle conservation on the island.

Baker said that Jo was something of a miracle “child” as blind turtles do not survive very long. She added that Jo receives about 10,000 visitors annually, who also come to learn about the project.

Source from New Straits Times: Missing Blind Turtle Found