Thousands of Olive Ridley turtles arrive on Odisha coast to lay eggs
The forest department is pulling all stops to ensure the safety of these critically endangered marine creatures
By Satchidananda Behera
BHUBANESWAR, DEC 10: With the setting in of the breeding season of Olive Ridley sea turtles, thousands of these marine guests have swathed stretches of sand-beds on the shore of Bay of Bengal – from Devi river mouth to Dhamara river mouth in Odisha.
These marine creatures generally migrate from the Pacific Ocean to the Gahirmatha marine sanctuary, considering it to be a safer nesting ground.
The state forest department made all the arrangements along the entire stretch to ensure the safety of the turtles. The department has taken various awareness programmes involving fishermen, trawler owners and local non-governmental organisations.
Artist Srikant Das is reportedly creating awareness through his paintings. “I want to say through my paintings that these turtles play a significant role in sustaining biodiversity and marine ecosystem,” said Dash.
The forest department is pulling all stops to ensure the safety of these critically endangered marine creatures.
“The turtle nesting season has set in since November 1. In order to ensure the safety of the turtles, we have set up 16 turtle protection camps including 14 onshore camps and two offshore camps. While one offshore camp is located at Bahubali, which is our permanent camp and the second one is at Madali, which is temporary,” informed Rajnagar divisional forest officer (DFO) Sudarshan Gopinath Yadav.
The mass nesting of Olive Ridleys at Gahirmatha shore was first spotted in the year 1975.
Usually, a female Olive Ridley lays about 100 eggs. After laying eggs on the seashore, the mother turtle hides hole with sand and returns to the sea. In the heat of the Sun, the baby turtles come out of eggs within 45 to 60 days and crawl into the sea.
The Odisha government has already clamped a seven-month prohibition on fishing activities along the stretch of three major river mouths in the state for conservation of endangered Olive Ridley sea turtles. The fishing ban was imposed at Dhamra, Devi and Rushikulya river mouths starting from November 1, 2022 to May 31, 2023.
Fishing by motorised vessels, trawlers and those using mechanised fishing techniques has been prohibited 20 kilometers from the specified coast of the sea turtle congregation area and their buffer zones in the vicinity.
