Sea Turtle Association of Japan Works to Protect Endangered Species

Sea turtles are on the verge of extinction all over the world. The frequency with which loggerhead turtles lay eggs in Japan, its only nesting site in the North Pacific region, decreased by more than half during the 1990s. Leatherback turtles were observed laying eggs only twice in 1999 in Terengganu, Malaysia, although during the 1970s such behavior was recorded on about 2,000 occasions. The green turtle, the hawksbill, and the olive ridley turtle are all subject to similar circumstances.

To ameliorate this situation, activists and researchers involved in studying and protecting sea turtles around Japan got together and established the Sea Turtle Association of Japan in 1990. While keeping in close contact with researchers and volunteers around the world, the association has been working to pursue the theme of conservation of sea turtle habitat.

The association conducts a variety of survey and protection work, including counts of nesting turtles, protection of nesting sites, and tagging surveys in which they attach a tag to a turtle and release it in order to determine its home range. The association also attempts to specify the causes of sea turtle death by dissecting and analyzing dead stranded turtles. An accumulation of data obtained in this way has been built up.

Membership has been increasing year by year as more people agree with the spirit of the association, which has also been expanding its range of activities.


http://www.umigame.org

Posted: 2004/05/24 03:51:42 PM
Japanese version