15 turtle deaths in a single day on city beaches shock activists

Shravan Krishnan, a conservationist with Students Sea Turtle Conservation Network [SSTCN], said the volunteers came across 15 dead adult Olive Ridley sea turtles during a single night of patrolling, in search of nests. “The nesting season has just about to begin but we already have 40 dead turtles. 

The main reasons for these deaths is because of trawling and commercial fishing. The injuries on the torsos show that these turtles got caught in trawling and gill nets and died. The results will only be known after the post-mortem,” he said. 

Nishanth Ravi, an animal rescuer and volunteer during the nesting season since 2009, said the scenario looks bleak, especially at the beginning of the season. “We found around 10 dead turtles that night, which we marked as per protocol. We also saw around seven more dead turtles in the sea. This is the first time we are seeing so many dead turtles at the start of the season,” he said. With last year recorded as the lowest nesting season, activists say it is too early for such a high mortality rate. 

“It is too early in the season for such a large number of turtle deaths when compared to the number of nests. This year, we have found only three nests while there have been nearly 40 dead turtles. In the last few years, we have seen a drop in the number of turtles nesting on our shores. In 2016, which was the lowest nesting season, we found hardly a hundred nests. The year before, in 2015, we found 225 nests,” said Akila Balu, a coordinator for SSTCN. 

The efforts taken on the land to protect the Olive Ridleys are in vain, unless the ocean is monitored. “Turtle Excluder Device (TED) should be mandatory for all vessels, which is not being enforced. Trawling should be closely monitored as many of these boats fish close to the coast, which is a violation. The Fisheries Department’s government order on banning motorised fishing vessels within five nautical miles during the nesting season has not helped much. 

Unless they monitor the ocean carefully, we may see more dead turtles,” added Shravan. Meanwhile, an official from the Fisheries Department said they are collaborating with various agencies to implement the order.