Green sea turtles coming ashore to lay their eggs should be reported to the Penghu County Government to help preserve the endangered species, especially as the national conservation zone in Wangan Island (望安島) is seeing fewer of the turtles return to lay eggs, the Penghu Department of Agriculture and Fisheries said.
Wangan Island was designated a conservation area for green sea turtles in 1991, when 16 turtles — a high — returned to lay eggs, but the numbers have been dropping ever since, the department said.
Only one turtle was reported returning to lay eggs in 2014 and two last year, the department said.
Photo: Liu Yu-ching, Taipei Times
Magong Island’s (馬公) Shihli (蒔裡) and Longmen (龍門) districts have seen more of the turtles returning.
Hawksbill sea turtles have also been reported in Husi (湖西) and Nanliao (南寮) districts, the department said.
Other locations, such as Jibei Islet (吉貝嶼), Penghu beach and other beaches around the county have all reported sightings of turtles laying eggs, the department said, adding that it is asking county residents to report any sightings to help conserve the places where these endangered reptiles lay eggs.
The Council of Agriculture and the Forestry Bureau have given permission for officials to dig out weaker turtles that are struggling to make it out of their nests once the majority of young turtles have been seen moving toward the sea.
Eight Chinese naval vessels and 24 military aircraft were detected crossing the median line of the Taiwan Strait between 6am yesterday and 6am today, the Ministry of National Defense said this morning. The aircraft entered Taiwan’s northern, central, southwestern and eastern air defense identification zones, the ministry said. The armed forces responded with mission aircraft, naval vessels and shore-based missile systems to closely monitor the situation, it added. Eight naval vessels, one official ship and 36 aircraft sorties were spotted in total, the ministry said.
INCREASED CAPACITY: The flights on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays would leave Singapore in the morning and Taipei in the afternoon Singapore Airlines is adding four supplementary flights to Taipei per week until May to meet increased tourist and business travel demand, the carrier said on Friday. The addition would raise the number of weekly flights it operates to Taipei to 18, Singapore Airlines Taiwan general manager Timothy Ouyang (歐陽漢源) said. The airline has recorded a steady rise in tourist and business travel to and from Taipei, and aims to provide more flexible travel arrangements for passengers, said Ouyang, who assumed the post in July last year. From now until Saturday next week, four additional flights would depart from Singapore on Monday, Wednesday, Friday
The Ministry of National Defense yesterday reported the return of large-scale Chinese air force activities after their unexplained absence for more than two weeks, which had prompted speculation regarding Beijing’s motives. China usually sends fighter jets, drones and other military aircraft around the nation on a daily basis. Interruptions to such routine are generally caused by bad weather. The Ministry of National Defense said it had detected 26 Chinese military aircraft in the Taiwan Strait over the previous 24 hours. It last reported that many aircraft on Feb. 25, when it spotted 30 aircraft, saying Beijing was carrying out another “joint combat
Taiwan successfully defended its women’s 540 kilogram title and won its first-ever men’s 640 kg title at the 2026 World Indoor Tug of War Championships in Taipei yesterday. In the women’s event, Taiwan’s eight-person squad reached the final following a round-robin preliminary round and semifinals featuring teams from Ukraine, Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, the Basque Country and South Korea. In the finals, they swept the Basque team 2-0, giving the team composed mainly of National Taiwan Normal University students and graduates its second championship in a row, and its fourth in five years. Team captain
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