What’s happening for Egyptian Red Sea turtles in 2012?
After the first year HEPCA decided to launch more activities on marine turtles, involve users in all the aspects of data collection and raise the number of awareness activities. Following below is a list of activities planned for this year which implementation will depend mostly on funding available.
Increase monitoring of nesting grounds
There are two species of marine turtles nesting along the Egyptian Red sea coast: the green and the hawksbill turtle. Nesting is scattered along most of the coast with some important sites located on islands (Giftun, Zabargad and Sirnaka being among the most important) and on beaches in Sharm El Sheikh and Wadi Gimal-Hamata National Park. In 2012, HEPCA will start a monitoring program aiming at gathering as much information as possible for the whole area. For this, we will be working with local authorities, hotels and resorts along the coast but also with local communities in order to obtain standardized data from the key nesting sites.
We will also start a systematic assessment of artificial light pollution from hotels close to nesting areas in order to reduce this problem. Artificial light pollution is the first cause of reduction in the number of nesting events along in-shore beaches.
Monitoring of feeding grounds
The Red Sea Turtle Research Project will continue with the scheme used in 2011 but we will also improve our monitoring on the sea grass areas, adding studies on sea grass distribution, species diversity and abundance.
TurtleWatch – Egypt
The project will continue as in 2011 with more dive centers also from the El Gouna and Hurghada area. The TurtleWatch project is now part of the MEGAbase program (still in a pilot phase) which aims at gathering sightings on all the marine megafauna (sharks, marine mammals and turtles in particular). Those participants of TurtleWatch willing to expand to the MEGAbase will be encouraged to do so and will receive all needed material.
Red Sea Turtle Catalogue
We will continue our photo-matching in order to identify more and more individuals. We will start accepting also pictures from previous years in order to establish how much time the same turtle has been spending in the same place. The catalogue will be available on our web-site in the TurtleWatch page.
Red Sea Turtle Stranding and Salvage network
Understanding marine turtle mortality causes is the first step in order to protect them better. For this reason it is important to report to us on all stranded animals you find. HEPCA will create a page in our website with basic information on what to do and who to call in case of finding a stranded marine turtle.
Capacity building, education and awareness
We will continue accepting interns for our research project from Egyptian universities. HEPCA is also supporting the first Egyptian master student studying marine turtles of the Red Sea. Part of his activities will include training and workshops with the local community and in particular with fishermen in order to involve them in the data collection and get some data on by-catch and consumption. We will also increase the number of awareness days for children and the younger members of our community. Following the scheme of the “Turtle Day” organized here in Hurghada, we will have more similar events upon request. One is already planned for the beginning of February in El Quseir.
Do you want to know more about the achievements of the HEPCA efforts to protect marine turtles of the Egyptian Red Sea in 2011? Please have a look at our annual report now available on our website.
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