Braving hostile conditions, Olive Ridley turtles have crawled to the Thottappally coast in good numbers this season.
According to turtle conservationists, a record number of 21 nests with over 2,000 eggs have been found between Thottappally harbour and Pallana so far, compared to 12 a year ago. Among the nests, four were found in a small area between Thottappally harbour and Thottappally pozhi (sandbar at sea mouth) despite disturbances caused by ‘mineral sand-mining’. Conservationists also stumbled upon three nests a few metres south of the pozhi. The remaining 14 were found at Pallana.
Last year, Olive Ridleys had given Thottappally, including the area between the harbour and pozhi, a complete miss as all the nests were found at Pallana.
“Of the 21 clutches, which is a recent record, we could count eggs in 19 nests. The eggs in two nests were hatched before we noticed them. We have been able to let around 1,200 hatchlings from 19 clutches into the sea this season. Three clutches are in the incubation stage,” says Saji Jayamohan, secretary, Green Roots Nature Conservation Forum.
‘A grave threat’
In spite of recording one of the highest Olive Ridley nesting on the coast, members of the Thottappally-based conservation group and local residents involved are worried. They say the opening of two mineral sand-mining sites at the harbour and pozhi, which government describes as ‘maintenance dredging’ and ‘desilting’ respectively, continue to pose a grave threat to the nesting of turtles.
Beach width reduced
According to them, the shore from Thottappally to Pallana, considered a natural nesting habitat of Olive Ridleys, is fast disappearing. “In many places, the width of the nesting beaches has been reduced from 45 metres to 30 metres or even lower due to severe sea erosion. The dredging and desilting along with the construction of breakwaters all play a significant role in the destruction of the natural habitat of Olive Ridleys, which are legally protected under Schedule I of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972,” says Mr. Jayamohan.
