NESTING TURTLES

[Anna M]

I am sure that many users of this site have enjoyed watching leatherback turtles nesting whilst on holiday in Tobago. Just by reading the posts it is obvious the thrills many have had on witnessing this special sight.
So what a shame then, that on a recent trip to Tobago, just as the nesting season was beginning, I was to see so much litter discarded on turtle beach (the largest turtle nesting site on Tobago). There were glass beer bottles, plastic bags and bottles-these can be fatal to turtles as they mistake them for jellyfish and eat them. I also saw horseback riding along the beach which can damage nests and endanger hatchlings.There were bright floodlights shining at the end of the beach from a sports ground. These would dazzle and confuse turtles heading for the beach to nest. I also learnt there is a jazz festival to be held in Plymouth at the end of the beach. Why hold this, with all its noise and lights, so near to nesting turtles? During the last nesting season MTV were allowed to build a film set on turtle beach. None of the 18 nests in that area hatched...
Poaching is also a problem with only limited patrols and none on other more deserted nesting beaches such as Mt Irvine Back Bay.
Leatherback and Hawksbill turtles are critically endangered.
Great numbers are dying at sea the victims of intensive, commercial fishing methods. What a pity that the Government of Tobago doesn't do more to protect the turtles that do make it safely to its beaches-especially as it markets itself as a eco-friendly tourist destination.
Turtles are a valuable part of Tobago's natural heritage and an asset to its economy.
It would be a tragedy if it was to loose them....

[Steve Wooler]

Hello Anna

Well said! I couldn’t agree with you more.

I have to say, however, that there’s only one stable that rides along that area and I always believed them to be a very responsible outfit. Every time I’ve seen them they have only been walking the horses along the water line, not in the soft sand higher up the beach where the turtles nest.

Yes, the MTV fiasco was a disaster – and one for which the local authorities must take full responsibility, given their bad management of the matter. I just can’t believe that they gave MTV the go-ahead during the nesting season, particularly knowing the low-quality drivel that MTV churns out and which was probably a damn good clue of the mentality of the types that make these programmes. You could almost bet that they wouldn’t show any sympathy or respect for the turtles and reports from those involved with the filming and/or the crew have certainly confirmed that.

The Jazz Festival is a very sore point. I expressed my views on this to the Secretary of Tourism in a letter only a week or so ago. The Jazz Festival is a welcome addition to the Tobago itinerary but WHY did they have to move it forward to the middle of the nesting season. Keep it at the end of the year, like last year, or move it to a destination where the noise and lights won’t have an impact on the nesting. Once again, it all seems to be about money.

This is not sustainable tourism. Tobago needs to learn that they will pay dearly long term for following the fast buck now. They were justly proud of their recent eco-destination awards and yet the local government seem to show nothing but contempt for the subject.