Critically Endangered Eastern Pacific Hawksbill Finds Refuge in Small Fishing Community

Reserva Natural Estero Padre Ramos lies on the Northern Pacific coast of Nicaragua, near the border of Honduras. This area was recently discovered to be an important nesting area for the critically endangered Eastern Pacific Hawksbill, a population teetering on the edge of extinction. The only other known Hawksbill nesting area of this magnitude in the entire Eastern Pacific is to the north, in the nearby country of El Salvador.

This year Marine Biologist and my guide for the next couple of days, FFI's Jose Urteaga, began collaborating with the local community of fishermen here in Padre Ramos to begin a nest protection program for the Hawksbill. Jose is Fauna & Flora International's Nicaragua Program Manager and was named one of National Geographic's 2010 Emerging Explorers for his sea turtle conservation work in Nicaragua.

Padre Ramos, a small remote fishing community has, up to this point, collected the Hawksbill eggs for sale and consumption. Now the locals, once poachers, have become conservationists, protecting the nests and hoping to draw visitors to see this critically important area while improving the livelihoods of the locals and protecting their natural resources. The Eastern Pacific Hawksbill population is so low that scientists aren't even sure how many remain. The Hawksbill has historically, and continues to be, hunted for its beautiful shell used to make jewelry and other ornaments. Pressure from poaching has only accelerated their decline.

My journey to Padre Ramos begins in the bustling capital city of Managua and takes me through small towns framed by lush green and dotted with banana and sugar cane plantations, with towering volcanoes in the distance. The area that we are headed to sits on the edge of a mangrove system. Here the Hawksbill travels inland, nesting on small estuary islands. The only other place Hawksbills are known to do this is in El Salvador. Elsewhere, they nest on ocean beaches like other sea turtle species.

As we board a small boat to explore the area, I am delighted by the natural beauty of this place - with the ocean to my left, the mangroves before me, and the towering volcano to my right that is actively smoking. We visit the two main nesting islands here. As I walk the beaches I imagine the Hawksbill, under the cover of darkness, hauling herself up high onto the beach and into the vegetation to lay her precious clutch of pearl-shaped eggs. This time of year though only remnants remain on the beach of her presence, empty eggshells that once held her tiny offspring.



Isla La Tigra - A Hawksbill
nesting beach



During the nesting season locals are monitoring and tagging the nesting females that come here to lay eggs and managing a hatchery where the eggs are guarded around the clock. During the first season of the project (2010), 280 nests were protected, an impressive number for a Hawksbill beach that was relatively unknown to researchers just a year ago, and for such an endangered population.

We return to the town where I am warmly greeted by the locals who welcome me and are interested in my visit to Padre Ramos. They are hopeful that their new lives as conservationists will bring good things to this small community that once not long ago, exploited the turtles unsustainably. Feeling inspired by their enthusiasm, I hope to return to Padre Ramos in June, during the peak of the nesting season, to volunteer my time and get my hands sandy.

For information about volunteering on a sea turtle conservation project, please see our website for details.

For more information about the status of the Eastern Pacific Hawksbill see ICAPO -the Eastern Pacific Hawksbill Initiative website.

Paula von Weller

Research Associate

SEE Turtles

The Hawksbill & The High Price of Being Beautiful

While traveling in Nicaragua, I made a special trip this past week to the artisan market in Masaya south of the capital city of Managua. The “Mercado Nacional de Artesanias” is the largest artisan market in Nicaragua and perhaps Latin America according to some sources.  I was anxious to find some colorful handicrafts to return home with.  The open-air market, with 80 or so shops, is housed in a restored 19th century building with castle-like walls and was nearly destroyed in the Revolution of 1978-1979. 

As I wandered around the market I began to see what looked like jewelry made of sea turtle shell, semi-transparent with creamy gold and brown streaks.  I stopped at one vendor and asked in my very limited Spanish if the bracelets were “tortuga marina” in which the woman enthusiastically responded that yes they were indeed made from “tortuga Carey.”  Tortuga Carey in Latin America means Hawksbill.  I snapped a photo and continued on my way only to find vendor after vendor with piles of jewelry made from the colorfully patterned shell of the Hawksbill which was hunted almost to extinction for this very reason.

I left the market empty handed, feeling disappointed about my finds.  The Hawksbill sea turtle is currently listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.  It is also protected by CITES, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species.  CITES is an international agreement between countries aimed at protecting species from extinction as a result of trade.  The Eastern Pacific Hawksbill in particular is thought to be the most endangered sea turtle population worldwide. The species was hunted almost to extinction for its ornately colored shell to make trinkets, jewelry, eyeglass frames, wall hangings and other crafts.  The Hawksbill is also under threat from habitat degradation, incidental capture in fisheries, and poaching of eggs.  The IUCN estimates that Hawksbills have declined by as much as 80% across their range. 

Items made from sea turtle shell are often referred to as “tortoiseshell.”  Sometimes this material is synthetic, although it can be difficult to tell the difference between the two unless you know what you're looking at.  It is illegal to purchase, possess, or trade sea turtle products.  When traveling abroad and purchasing souvenirs, be sure to purchase only synthetic “tortoiseshell”, or when in doubt avoid these products to ensure you aren't buying the real thing.

For more information about sea turtles and illegal trade with links to more information, see our Poaching & Illegal Trade page.

Paula

Research Associate

SEE Turtles

El Salvador Turtle Conservation Update

(Note: We are posting updates from Josh Baugh, a student at DePauw University who is interning with FUNZEL, one of El Salvador's leading conservation groups. SEE Turtles has helped fund Josh's work. This is an edited post, for the full story, visit Josh's blog.)

Nearly all that I have been doing and writing about in my time here in San Diego is in some way related to turtle research and conservation. Much of my writing although political in nature remains rooted in what I have experienced working and living at a turtle hatchery. Admittedly, I have seen and experienced much outside of the hatchery as well through helping Antonio with his work with CEPRODE, a nationwide internationally funded organization designed to help protect communities against natural disasters. As president of the local CEPRODE, Antonio is always going to the river, which with each rain threatens the rural community, and working throughout the community. I have found that hopping on the rusty bike I've been loaned and tagging along with him is a great way of building trust and getting to know the community. Through this means I have learned about a lot of the problems in the community and those shared throughout the country that are reducing the success of the USAID turtle project. All of this time spent with him and out in the community has been invaluable and in my mind equally important to the turtle work I have been doing.

Currently, I am working on three projects in addition to assisting Nefta and Antonio at the hatchery during the night. These are monitoring the temperature and humidity of the hatchery, taking GPS points at all the 2009 turtle nesting locations in Playa San Diego and taking GPS points of all light sources along the beach, as well as a measurement of their relative light intensity. The first regarding the hatchery is for Funzel/USAID and is designed to help assist them with better hatchery management. Temperature and humidity are both very important to monitor as in Olive Ridleys and all species of turtles, sex is determined by temperature. In the Olive Ridely species I am working with an incubation temperature above 30.5˚C produces all females and below all males. Measuring humidity by means of precipitation is important for hatchery management as well because rain is the primary natural means of reducing incubation temperature. Without monitoring temperature and humidity it is likely that a hatchery will produce all males or females, thereby disrupting the sex ratio in wild sea turtle populations.

The second and third projects I mentioned involving the GPS are being done to assist Rodrigo Samayoa, current Vice President of Funzel, on a scientific paper proposing proper beach management for sea turtles. My research is providing him with data regarding the effect of beach lighting on nesting populations. Currently there is debate as to whether or not lighting negatively affects the Olive Ridley species. In other species of sea turtle it has been proven that direct lights along the beach confuse the turtles to the point that they are disoriented and unable to locate nesting grounds and have difficulty returning to the sea.

On daily basis I am monitoring the temperature and rain gage by taking readings 4 times a day. I take one at 6am, 12pm, 6pm and 12am. Additionally, during the night when the conditions are right Nefta and I walk the beach to look for nesting females during the night. The rest of the night we are resting in our hammocks waiting for the tortugueros to bring eggs to us. You can say that we let them do the work for us in this regard but it is a way of livelihood for many of them that have been doing it for years. After they bring the eggs in we count them and then Antonio calculates how much money they will receive using a chart from USAID. Currently we are paying $3 per 14 eggs brought in. Right then Antonio will give them a receipt that they can bring in during the next time that USAID comes to pay. They come on a weekly basis.

I have posted some pictures to further describe my work. But another thing I should mention is that I had the opportunity to go out to sea with some fisherman to see the turtles mating. We were lucky enough to have them come right next to the boat so I got some good shots of the whole deal. I also took some videos which I unfortunately unable to post but in the process of taking those I made myself seasick. Lets just say that by the end of those 3 hours at sea I was throwing up off the side of the boat. Another cool thing I have been able to do is work with the tortugueros and extract eggs to bring to the hatchery. With the olive ridley season picking up now as well we have started giving tours to tourist in which they can come walk the beach learn about turtles and then help release hatchlings. These tours are being run through a hostel that is being built and a supporting committee. This is all still being formed and could be a great place for future volunteers interested in turtles to come stay. I have been offered a spot on the committee, which would give me partial ownership. I am currently debating this option.

-Josh