{"id":6679,"date":"2013-10-24T16:39:40","date_gmt":"2013-10-24T11:09:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/fsl-india.org\/blog\/?p=6679"},"modified":"2013-10-24T16:39:40","modified_gmt":"2013-10-24T11:09:40","slug":"conserving-sea-turtles","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fsl-india.org\/blog\/conserving-sea-turtles\/","title":{"rendered":"Conserving Sea Turtles"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Volunteers<\/a>
Volunteers raise awareness on sea turtle conservation at the Timi-Kurm (whale-turtle) Festival<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

<\/b>In the year 2011-12, nearly 720 hatchlings* of the Olive Ridley sea turtle were released through sea turtle conservation initiatives mobilized by FSL India. For close to 8 years, our volunteers, local community members and conservation organizations in the area have been working together on the coastline of Udupi District, in the State of Karnataka, which forms the sporadic nesting grounds of these turtles. It is one of FSL’s oldest home based, self-funded projects.<\/p>\n

While there has been much progress, there is still more to be done: the sad reality remains that only 8 nests* were recorded during 2011-12, along the 60 km stretch of coastline monitored by us.<\/p>\n

It was the lowest number of nests found since 2007*. <\/i><\/p>\n

Threats to sea turtles<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Interviews with local community members indicate a perceived reduction in sea turtle nesting in the area over the past few years*. Classified as vulnerable according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN), the Olive Ridley (Lepidochelys olivacea<\/i>) is \u2018<\/i>likely to become Endangered unless the circumstances threatening its survival and reproduction improve\u2019. Sea turtles in the Kundapur region of Udupi District where we implement our conservation initiatives are threatened by various human activities, including:<\/p>\n