News Post India 26 Apr 08;
In what is one of the most breathtaking sights of nature, millions of Olive Ridley baby turtles broke out of their eggshells under the sand at one of their mass nesting ground in coastal Orissa.
After emerging from the nests in the Rushikulya river mouth, in the southern district of Ganjam, some 175 km from Bhubaneswar, the hatchlings started their journey towards the Bay of Bengal, forest officer Surendra Biswal told IANS.
Orissa is home to three mass nesting sites of the endangered Olive Ridley turtles, namely Nasi Islands of Gahirmatha beach in Kendrapada district, Devi river mouth in Puri district and the Rushikulya river mouth.
Gahirmatha is considered one of world's largest nesting sites with around 700,000-800,000 turtles laying eggs on the beach every year. However, no mass nesting has been reported from Gahirmatha and Devi river mouth so far this year.
'At least 170,000 turtles came to 4.2 km stretch of Rushikulya beach on March 4 for mass nesting and returned to the sea,' Biswal said.
The female turtles drag her great weight ashore, dig a nest with her back flippers, deposit about a hundred eggs, cover and conceal the nest before returning to the sea.
'The eggs incubate in the warm sand and the female turtles never visit the nest again to take care of the eggs or the hatchlings,' he said. A female turtle lays at least 120 to 150 eggs in one go.
'Hatchlings emerge from the eggs after 45-60 days. It is one of nature's rare phenomenon that babies grow without their mother,' he said.
It is believed that the Olive Ridley turtles return to the same beach to nest where they were hatched.
Mass hatchling here started Wednesday and all the baby turtles will go to the sea within a day or two. 'We have taken all care to ensure that the baby turtles go (to the sea) without any harm,' Biswal said.
'We have engaged at least 52 villagers and forest guards to protect the baby turtles.'
In the recent times, sea erosion has led to many turtles' nests being damaged. Predators like dogs, jackals and birds have taken their toll on the nesting of turtles. Mechanised trawlers along the coast also play a role in the massacre of thousands of these omnivorous sea turtles.
'We have removed all the boats from the sea near the nesting site for the smooth journey of turtles from their nests to the sea,' Biswal added.
'Like tigers and elephants, the Olive Ridley turtle is protected under Schedule I of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972. They should be protected at any cost,' Biswajit Mohanty, coordinator of the turtle conservation group Operation Kachhapa, told IANS.
Turtle babies flood beach in Orissa
The Times of India 28 Apr 08;
RISHIKULYA (Orissa): About 150,000 baby turtles emerged from their shells and crawled out of the sandy shores of the Rishikulya beach in Orissa, one of the world's largest nesting grounds for Olive Ridley turtles.
"It is very heartening and delightful to see that nesting has happened this year and hatching has also occurred. Almost all babies have come out except those 30 per cent, which were washed away, by the water. They are going towards the sea," said Bishwajit Mohanty, Director of Operation Kachchap.
Hatching is the most crucial time for the tiny animals as many, unable to clear off the huge loads of sand from their dens, often die of suffocation or if they manage to reach land, are picked up by crows, eagles, jackals and stray dogs.
But in recent years, conservationists have come to their rescue and together with villagers and dozens of volunteers, many of them children, as well as the forest department, rescue and safely deliver the babies into the sea.
The conservationists have also put up a net to prohibit these young ones to crawl in upward direction and getting lost.
"I am coming here for the second time. I just saw a few turtles emerging and children are doing some very good work, collecting the turtles. Initially, there was no net to stop the turtles from going outside and getting lost. This is very good to keep the turtles safe, the baby hatchlings," said Deepani, a visitor from Gujarat.
Every year as winter rolls around, the endangered Olive Ridleys move in large groups to three major nesting sites along the Orissa coast before returning to the sea. Over a million turtles made their ritual trek to the nesting sites to dig sand pits and lay eggs in February.
According to wildlife officials, over 250,000 turtles make their annual trek to the nesting sites.
In 2004, over one million turtles came to the Orissa shores to digs and pits and lay eggs, the largest concentration being at Gahirmatha beach. Such large concentrations only occur at a few sites in the world.
The turtles are protected under Wildlife Protection Act, but conservationists say as many as 50,000 turtles have died in the hands of humans, either directly or indirectly over the past few years.
The Olive Ridley turtle, which can grow up to 75 cm in length, is found in tropical regions of the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian Oceans.
