Polynesian turtles… poachers at “work”

Having received this press release from Cécile Gaspar, president of the Te Mana O Te Moana association, about the poaching of sea turtles in Polynesia.

5 turtles collected at the Moorea Marine Turtle Clinic in 2 weeks!

Press Release

Te mana o te moana association

Since the end of February 2011, 5 sea turtles have been collected at the Moorea Turtle Clinic. 3 of them were hawksbill turtles, poisonous if their flesh was eaten, and yet injured by harpoon guns in the neck, head and shell. "Mahana" and "Pearl" are currently undergoing daily veterinary treatment aimed at getting them out of this state of emergency, the third turtle died two hours after arriving, the arrow having passed through the lungs. One wonders why these turtles are the target of fishermen when their flesh will not be consumed ... A fourth hawksbill turtle was found dead by divers at the bottom of the lagoon and was brought to the Clinic for autopsy. Finally, the Hibiscus Foundation of Tahaa also sent to the Clinic an olive ridley turtle, a rather rare species in Polynesia, amputated of the right front fin, which bore the obvious signs of an entanglement in a longline-type fishing gear or which had been hung by the neck and fin. The upsurge in the number of hawksbill turtles injured by humans is noted by specialists at the Clinic who are concerned about the future of this endangered species all over the world. Without speaking of course of the well-known threats weighing on the green turtles in Polynesia ...

The Te mana o te moana association would like to thank the Moorea Gendarmerie Brigade, the Pearl Beach Resort team, the Hibiscus Tahaa Foundation and the Moorea Fun Dive for their help over the last few weeks.

The Moorea Turtle Clinic, authorized by ministerial decree, has been active since 2004 and has already taken in more than 200 turtles. It is managed by the association Te mana o te moana, recognized as being of general interest, member of the French committee of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and environmental approved whose sponsors are none other than Jean-Michel Cousteau, Ambassador of the Oceans and Jean-François Clervoy, French astronaut, fervent defender of the environment. It is currently the only care center for marine turtles in Polynesia which is managed by a veterinarian and qualified biologists including Dr Cécile Gaspar, veterinary doctor, IUCN expert. The Moorea marine turtle clinic welcomes turtles from all Polynesian archipelagos and at its expense. Its new infrastructure has been fully funded by the Pacific Beachcomber SC group and its current operating costs are covered by private donations or local and international institutions, without any support from the country. Veterinary acts are voluntary. The association also offers structured educational programs on sea turtles to primary schools in French Polynesia and more than 32.000 schoolchildren have been welcomed in 6 years. It is also developing an observatory and an observation network for marine turtles in order to be able to establish a database in partnership with other associations or local institutions and in particular CRIOBE in Moorea.

For any information relating to sea turtles requiring care or even observations of turtles at sea or in laying eggs, the association can be contacted 24 hours a day: Matthieu Petit: 24 715, Cécile Gaspar: 344 70 60 or on matthieu email addresses .temana @ gmail.com or temanaotemoana@gmail.com Our site: www.temanaotemoana.org