BBC News 23 Jan 08;
Volunteers are searching part of the south of Bangladesh to find dogs they believe are responsible for killing endangered turtles, officials say.
Experts say eggs laid on beaches by rare Olive Ridley turtles are being eaten by the dogs near the coastal town of Cox's Bazar.
They also say that the turtles are being killed after becoming caught up in fishermen's nets.
Olive Ridleys are well known for nesting on beaches in the region.
Experts say that in Bangladesh, that makes their eggs and hatchlings vulnerable to packs of hungry stray dogs that roam many of the country's built-up areas.
Poison
Hundreds of turtles that normally live deep in the sea come ashore from September to March to lay their eggs and bury them in the sand.
Their nesting zones along the Bay of Bengal are declared protected areas in Bangladesh and India.
Officials say they have now begun a programme to remove or exterminate about 300 of the dogs.
"We will only kill stray dogs which have been living in the wild and harming the turtles," Faruk Ahmed, an official from the Fisheries and Livestock Ministry, told the AP news agency.
He said the dogs not only destroy freshly laid eggs in the sand but also break into nearby hatcheries where the eggs are taken for protection.
Volunteers and conservationists on Wednesday began catching strays with long hooks and injecting them with poison.
The carcasses of the canines are buried in holes dug in the sand.
Conservationists say the turtles also get tangled in fine fishing nets cast near the shore.
Fishermen reportedly kill them because they do not want to damage their nets.
Olive Ridleys, which weigh 40-60kg (90-130lbs) each, are the smallest of all sea turtles, and are endangered throughout their habitat in the Indo-Pacific region.
They are particularly valued by hunters for their skin and meat.
Bangladesh kills wild dogs to save endangered turtles
Associated Press, International Herald Tribune 23 Jan 08;
COX'S BAZAR, Bangladesh: Volunteers and animal experts combed beaches along Bangladesh's southern coast Wednesday to catch and kill wild dogs that are threatening endangered sea turtles, conservation officials said.
Dozens of threatened Olive Ridley turtles that usually swim ashore to lay eggs on beaches have been found dead along the coast in recent weeks, the officials said.
In addition to pollution and the use of illegal fishing nets near the shore, stray dogs and wild foxes are responsible for destroying eggs and killing the dwindling turtle species in Cox's Bazar district, said M.A. Hannan, a wildlife conservation officer from the Environment Department.
At least 50 turtles — 25 last week alone — have been found dead so far this breeding season along the coast, 185 miles south of Dhaka, Hannan said.
Hundreds of turtles, which usually inhabit the deep seas, come ashore to lay and bury their eggs in the sand from September to March. Their popular nesting grounds along the Bay of Bengal are declared protected areas in Bangladesh and India.
But sometimes the turtles — which weigh up to 130 pounds each — get tangled in fine fishing nets cast near the shore, or are mauled by packs of dogs or foxes, which also eat the eggs and hatchlings.
Five spots along the 62-mile stretch from Cox's Bazar to Teknaf beach, and the offshore islands of Sonadia and St. Martin's, have been earmarked for the wild dog extermination operation, officials said.
"We will only kill stray dogs which have been living in the wild and harming the turtles," said Dr. Faruk Ahmed, an official from the Fisheries and Livestock Ministry.
Wild dogs destroy freshly laid eggs in the sand and also break into nearby hatcheries where the eggs are taken for protection, he added.
On Wednesday, local volunteers — supervised by dogcatchers brought from the capital — caught strays with long hooks and injected them with poison. The carcasses were then buried in holes dug in the sand.
Olive Ridleys, the smallest of all sea turtles, are endangered worldwide, Hannan said.
Bangladesh's government has launched a conservation project with the help of the U.N. Development Program to protect turtle eggs on beaches. The eggs are incubated in safe places, and the hatchlings are released back into the sea.
"We have already collected more than 1,500 eggs for breeding this year," Hannan said.
Associated Press writer Parveen Ahmed in Dhaka contributed to this report.
