Conservationists began lectures in Magong (馬公) yesterday on how to protect endangered green sea turtles in Penghu County as tourists flock in for the turtles’ nesting season.
Rich with marine resources, the waters of the Penghu Archipelago are home to many kinds of turtles, including the endangered green sea turtles that come ashore to lay eggs on Wangan (望安), southwest of the main Magong Island.
These large creatures, which can weigh up to 180kg, are rarely seen on land and have become a tourist attraction during their nesting season.
The Penghu County Government, which wants to showcase the migration of the sea turtles as a theme in promoting Penghu’s ecological tourism, and National Taiwan Ocean University professor Cheng I-jiunn (程一駿), are concerned about the impact tourism could have on the turtles.
Cheng said that without proper knowledge about the turtle’s habitat and awareness of conservation, tourists who enter the area could harm the turtles and the eggs they lay.
To better inform people on how not to disturb the turtles while observing them, the Penghu County Government Agriculture and Fisheries Bureau has invited Cheng and other conservationists to give a series of public lectures in Magong every weekend between July 18 and Sept. 15.
National Taiwan Ocean University’s Marine Turtle Research Laboratory started a green turtle research program on Wangan in 1992. Every summer, graduate students and volunteers came to the island to conduct surveys on the beaches on which the green turtles nest.
In addition, a sea turtle rehabilitation center was set up on Wangan in 1997 to accommodate injured and sick turtles. The center has taken care of more than 250 rescued sea turtles and about 150 have been released after being rehabilitated.
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