Hawksbill Turtle Monitoring and Research

The largest hawksbill turtle (Erechmotelys imbricata) population remaining in the Western Indian Ocean occurs in Seychelles.  However, populations have declined due to widespread harvesting of nesting females during the 30 years prior to 1994, when a total legal ban on turtle harvest was implemented.  An exception to the downward trend is the population at Cousin Island Special Reserve, managed by Nature Seychelles.

Turtle monitoring has been in operation on Cousin since 1972. Turtle monitoring forms a core part of the  Cousin  work programs during the nesting season. Records of dates and locations are kept as nesting beaches are patrolled several times a day during daylight.

Tagging has been carried out since 1973.  Wardens on Cousin apply metal tags bearing a unique identification code to the trailing edge of both front flippers of each nesting turtle encountered during beach patrols. This long-running activity has allowed Cousin to identify individual females as they return to the beaches to nest season after season.

Programme News

Conservation success: Eight-fold increase of turtle nesting on Cousin Island

The one in a thousand

Woman jailed for turtle shell smuggling

Woman Convicted for turtle meat possession

Small Grants Programme supports Turtles

 

Attachments:
Download this file (HawksbillTurtleCousin2010.pdf)Hawksbill turtle monitoring in Cousin Island Special Reserve, Seychelles: an eig[Hawksbill turtle monitoring in Cousin Island Special Reserve, Seychelles: an eight-fold increase in annual nesting numbers]240 kB

Our History

Since 1998.

Seychelles Nature, Green HealthClimate Change, Biodiversity Conservation & Sustainability Organisation

@CousinIsland Manager

Facebook: http://goo.gl/Q9lXM

Roche Caiman, Mahe

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Centre for Environment & Education

Roche Caiman,

P.O. Box 1310, Mahe, Seychelles

Tel:+ 248 2519090

Email: nature@seychelles.net