'Kurma Asih': Turtle defenders on patrol<\/p>\n
By Kyla Evans<\/p>\n
When a rare species of turtle suddenly returned, after decades of
\nabsence, to nest on the beach in Bali where it was once abundant,
\nlocal hunters formed themselves into a protection force and now
\nspend much of their time helping to ensure that their traditional
\nturtle population will flourish once more.<\/p>\n
PRANCAK BEACH, Bali: Only 90 kilometers down the south-west
\ncoast from the main tourist resorts of the island of Bali lies
\nthe little village of Prancak. The village head, Wayan Tirta, is
\na turtle hunter--but he is also moving force behind \"Kurma Asih,\"
\nmeaning turtle lovers, a community-based organization which aims
\nto protect turtles.<\/p>\n
This is important, because near the village is Prancak beach,
\na three-kilometer stretch of black sand and one of the few
\nremaining known nesting sites for Olive Ridley and Hawksbill
\nturtles in Bali.<\/p>\n
For generations sea turtles swam hundreds of kilometers to lay
\ntheir eggs on Prancak beach where they were born. Olive Ridley
\nand Hawksbill turtles are about 30 years old when they start to
\nmake the long voyage to the beach of their birth to lay their
\neggs. Once they flourished at Prancak, but demand for their eggs
\nand meat was great and perhaps as many as 50 nesting females and
\ntheir eggs would be taken from the beach every day to supply the
\ndemand in Denpasar, the island's capital.<\/p>\n
Over the years, however, such unsustainable exploitation of
\nnesting females took its toll, so that by the 1950s the numbers
\non the beach were declining. At the end of the decade, no Olive
\nRidley turtles were recorded nesting on Prancak.<\/p>\n
So it was with some surprise that, in June l997, marine
\nbiologist Ketut Sarjana Putra--working with the conservation
\norganization World Wide Fund (WWF) in Bali, heard that an Olive
\nRidley turtles were recorded nesting on Prancak.<\/p>\n
Earlier Ketut had been to Prancak to met village leaders and
\ndiscuss alternative solutions to the use of turtles in religious
\nceremonies. He had asked for any information about turtles to be
\npassed on to him-so Wayan Tirta called him immediately.<\/p>\n
Ketut rushed to Prancak to make sure that the turtle's nest
\nwas protected from predators and poachers, and from seawater that
\ncan flood the nest and drown the eggs. It was also vital to watch
\nthe beach at night to see if any other turtles came to nest and
\nif so, to protect their eggs.<\/p>\n
With Ketut's help, Wayan Tirta set up Kurma Asih to carry out
\nthe task of monitoring the beach and protecting the nests.
\nBetween June and August of that year, 12 turtles were recorded
\nnesting on the beach, and 260 eggs were successfully hatched.
\nfive turtles were tagged before being released into the sea.<\/p>\n
With the assistance of WWF, the hatching were measured,
\ncounted and most of them were kept in pools next to the beach,
\nand used for educating local communities about the importance of
\nprotecting turtles.<\/p>\n
In l998, more than 600 eggs were successfully hatched, and now
\nKurma Asih is not only looking after Prancak's turtles but also
\neducating people from other villages about the animals. A WWF
\nstaff member has recently moved to Prancak to give the group more
\ntraining and this knowledge will be passed on to their villages.
\neveryone is involved in the effort to protect the turtles-even
\nthe local fishermen, who themselves catch turtles, donate
\nsardines to feed them.<\/p>\n
In June l999, Prancak villagers watched as Wayan Tirta
\nreleased a turtle into the sea. Sulung was two years old, hatched
\nfrom the eggs of the first protected turtle nest on Prancak
\nbeach. The turtle was reluctant to go into the water, but
\neventually swam off.<\/p>\n
Wayan Tirta had taken care of the turtle for two years, and he
\nknew he would probably never see her again. After all, if, she is
\nindeed a female--which is not certain--it will be at least 27
\nyears before she swims back to Prancak to lay her own eggs.<\/p>\n
But Tirta remain optimistic. \"In many years,\" he says, \"
\nSulung will come back and my grandchildren will have a gift that
\nI have helped to send them.\"<\/p>\n
The writer is a press officer with WWF International based in
\nGland, Switzerland.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/kurma-asih-turtle-defenders-on-patrol-1447893297",
"image": ""
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