Sea Turtle Recovery Action Plan for Barbados - WIDECAST

CEP Technical Report No. 12
IV. SOLUTIONS TO STRESSES ON SEA TURTLES IN BARBADOS
4.1 Manage and Protect Habitat
The protection of important foraging and nesting habitats is crucial to the survival of sea
turtles in Barbados. As is true for many territories in the Caribbean, the decline in sea turtle
stocks in Barbados has coincided with a decline in nearshore fishery resources in general,
including lobster, conch, and sea eggs, and chronic deterioration of marine and coastal
environments. Nearshore fisheries are both easily accessible, and so the first to be overexploited,
and are the most vulnerable to land-based sources of pollution (see sections 4.143, 4.146, 4.147).
Where the pollution of nearshore waters negatively impacts on coral reef health, the
effectiveness of reefs as dissipators of wave energy is diminished and beach erosion can follow.
Therefore, nearshore habitat deterioration will ultimately affect more than just the livelihoods of
fishermen. The island's economy is heavily dependent upon tourism, and the management and
protection of natural resources is beginning to receive high priority (sections 4.611, 4.612). Sea
turtles are fortunate in that they should also benefit from most management and protection plans
designed to mitigate the many threats posed by pollution and general neglect of the marine
environment.
4.11 Identify essential habitat
In Barbados, coral reefs and sea grass beds are utilized by sea turtles for foraging and
sandy beaches are utilized for nesting. Primary habitats are poorly known, although some survey
work has been undertaken. There are no marine or terrestrial parks or reserves designated for the
protection of sea turtles. However, turtles and other marine life are protected from pollution and
harvest within the confines of the Barbados Marine Reserve, which extends 2.2 km along the
west coast and 1000 m offshore (Map 5).
4.111 Survey foraging areas
Limited resources dictate that the management and conservation of sea turtles focus first
on those habitats most critical to their survival in Barbados; further study is sorely needed in
order to identify these areas. The Coastal Conservation Study (1984) mapped the locations of
sea grass beds and coral reefs around the west and south beaches of Barbados (Map 2). These
areas all represent potential foraging habitats for green and hawksbill sea turtles. Loggerheads,
which are rare in Barbados, would be expected to forage on crustaceans and mollusks in reef,
rock and other hard bottom areas. Leatherbacks have not been observed to feed in the waters of
Barbados, and apparently remain in deep waters between nestings. This species would be
expected to consume jellyfish and related animals either at the surface or in the water column.
Foraging has been cited as an impetus for deep diving by gravid females in the U. S. Virgin
Islands (Eckert et al., 1989).
Sea grasses are much less extensive around Barbados than around most other Caribbean
islands and their role in the coastal ecosystem of Barbados has not been studied. The largest
grass bed areas are on the south coast from Oistins to Bridgetown, and there are smaller beds in
protected bays on the east coast. Along the western coast, sea grasses are very sparse. Knowled-
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