f Paria - Ins and Outs of Trinidad & Tobago 2013

The Tobago
experience
Edison Boodoosingh/trinimages.com
Turtle Watching in Tobago
Leatherback Turtle
by Tanya Clovis
Tobago is
currently blessed
with a small but
critical nesting
population of
the endangered
l e a t h e r b a c k ,
hawksbill and
green marine
turtles on our beaches during the months
of March to September. Possibly an even
smaller population of equally vulnerable
hawksbills and greens call our offshore
waters their home, year round.
During the peak months of nesting
season, the volunteers and staff of Save
Our Sea Turtles (SOS) Tobago patrol three
of Tobago’s busiest leatherback nesting
beaches in the greater Black Rock area
in attempts to learn more about these
elusive giants of the sea.
This coordinated patrol effort began
in 2000 as the natural evolution of the
individual protective efforts made during
the eighties and nineties in response
to the high levels of poaching taking
place on these beaches. While consistent
patrols have now reduced poaching
significantly, the threat of harassment
by well meaning but over zealous turtle
watchers has increased with the growing
popularity of turtle-watching tours.
Eco-tourism is a key component of
any sustainable conservation effort on a
small, tourist-oriented island and turtle
watching is an incredible experience for
visitors and residents alike. A few basic
guidelines can ensure that your presence
enhances the quality of the experience for
all…especially for the mother turtle.
Give nesting turtles and hatchlings lots
of space. A recommended 20 m (60 ft.)
from a female just approaching the beach
gives her lots of room to pick a safe spot to
dig her nest; a crowded turtle can be less
discerning and end up digging below the
high-tide line or abandoning the nesting
process all together.
Once she is laying, a closer look is
often possible with the guidance of the
patrollers, but if a turtle seems particularly
jumpy or a crowd is uncooperative, moving
in closer may not be permitted.
Hatchlings are hard to see and therefore
easy to step on at night especially if they
are disoriented by onshore lights and
scattered all over the beach. Give the
patrollers room to gather them all together
so that they can be safely relocated to a
darker part of the beach for release.
During the nesting season, many of our
beaches are quietly incubating hundreds
of delicate turtle eggs. Refrain from driving
on the beach, sticking beach umbrellas in
the sand and creating bonfires as these
activities can crush or cook the eggs.
Sand castles should be encouraged below
the high-water mark where there is less
chance of accidentally disrupting a nest.
Wear dark clothes, move quietly and
refrain from flash photography. Sometimes
even the illuminated screen of a cell phone
or video camera can be disorienting to a
turtle or hatchlings trying to find their way
back to sea on a dark beach. Patrollers
and guides may use a subdued light from
behind the turtle while she is laying to
illuminate the nest cavity for viewing and
to record data.
If you are staying in a beachfront
establishment, ask management about
their turtle-friendly policies and encourage
the reduction of beachfront lighting.
On a dark beach on a dark night,
nesting turtles can be hard to see to the
untrained eye but they are very sensitive
to light, movement and sound, so if you
are walking up and down the beach on
your own, the turtle can be scared off
before you even realise that she is there. It
is essential therefore, to go with a certified
tour guide who works with the SOS patrol
team. There is a partial list of guides on
our Web site and feel free to contact
us directly if in doubt. Even on a good
turtle-watching tour, a nesting or hatching
event is never absolutely guaranteed but
a good guide can make it a magical night
out, under the stars on Tobago’s most
beautiful beaches.
SOS Tobago
Web site: www.sos-tobago.org
E-Mail: info@sos-tobago.org
Mobile: (868) 290-3797
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The Ins & Outs of Trinidad and Tobago