Turkey’s Turtle Rescuers

Turkey’s Turtle Rescuers By Gary Lachman This summer I had the privilege of meeting a living icon of Turkey and her knight in shining armor. Well… Perhaps not shining armor; more like tortoise shell. I am referring to Kaptan June Haimoff of Iztuyu Beach in Dalyan and Professor Dr. Yakup Kaska of Pamukkale University in Denizli. A lady of “indeterminate age”, June Haimoff left the lap of luxury in Gstaad, Switzerland to embark on a voyage that has really never ended.

Sailing the converted Greek fishing boat Bouboulina, Kaptan June first laid eyes on Dalyan beach in 1975. She has spent much of the past 30 years making extraordinarily successful efforts to protect the nesting beaches of the Loggerhead (caretta caretta) and Green (Chelonia mydas) turtles. Professor Kaska is a man who found his passion relatively young, earning both a MSc and PhD studying turtles.

Although not exactly qualifying as “life in the fast lane”, his research on turtles, sea turtle conservation, research on sex ratio variation and heavy metal pollution has shown tangibly positive results. Kaptan June Haimoff My daughter, Julia – a marine biology student at Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Florida – and I arrived early in the morning at what first appeared a simple beachside cluster of tents, signs, shacks and a large metal Quonset hut.

Professor Kaska was there to greet us and introduce Kaptan June. I had been corresponding by email with both of them, thanks to a referral from my good friend Rahmi Koç, himself a staunch protector of the marine environment; being one of the founders of TURMEPA. (http://www.turmepa.org.tr/en/hakkimizda/sikca-sorulanlar.html ). Professor Yakup Kaska and Julia Lachman The Patients Inside the rescue center were many large round tanks containing the turtles that had been brought to the Professor and his team of volunteers for treatment. One turtle had a fin nearly sheared off by a fishing line.

Another’s head was severely cracked open by (presumably) a propeller blade. Two other tanks held day old hatchlings, each about 4 or 5 cm. in length. Volunteers from universities throughout Turkey and the world are invited to come and work with Professor Kaska on numerous projects including the care and feeding of the center’s “patients”, nest protection, public awareness campaigns, census taking, and other research activities. Julia immediately bonded with one of them, Stephanie, a veterinary medical student from Cornell University. Stephanie and Julia in one of the turtle rehabilitation tanks Turkey has long played an important role in the preservation and conservation of sea turtles in the Mediterranean.

The 1380th Water Products Circular forbids the hunting and collecting of sea turtles in Turkey. That legislation was followed by the 2872nd Environmental Law, the 3621st Coastal Law, the 2873rd National Park Law, and the 2863rd Law of Protection of Natural and Cultural Beauties; all serving to protect marine turtles. As a member of the international treaty protecting endangered species, as well as a member of several other international accords, Turkey has been a leader in the region for conservation of these beautiful creatures. The Preservation of Dalyan Beach Yet the best known action is probably the preservation of Dalyan Beach as a nesting place.

Thanks to the tireless efforts of Kaptan June, Dalyan has served as the “flagship beach” for the conservation of marine turtles since 1987 when she was successful in stopping the development of a large resort hotel that would have destroyed the turtles’ nesting sites. At first the locals were furious with her interference, and feared a reduction of their property values. However, when in 1988 the area was officially designated as a Special Environmental Protection Area, they began to appreciate the unique value of the beachfront.

The Dalyan area has the unusual characteristic of providing nesting habitat for both freshwater and marine turtles, supporting a population of Soft-shelled Nile Turtles in the brackish waters of the Dalyan River and Köycegiz Lake. The largest populations of these freshwater turtles are in Dalaman, the Seyhan River, and the Tuzla Drainage Chanel. According to Professor Kaska, only a small percentage of Sea Turtles actually reach the ripe old age of about 40 years. Sadly, most fall victim to beach predation by foxes, nest destruction by careless beachgoers, sea birds, nets, long lines and fish hooks, and boat propellers.

The day before we arrived, Professor Kaska and his volunteers had released a fully recuperated caretta caretta in the sea near Antalya. After a few months of care and feeding, the “patients” that Julia and I saw will hopefully share a similar happy fate. The biggest challenge now is raising the required funds to establish a government recognized foundation to support their rescue and education activities.

Thanks to the extraordinary efforts of the Sea Turtle Rescue Center of Dalyan and the perseverance of Kaptan June, the sea turtle population around Turkey should continue to prosper. Last week, the Sea Turtle Rescue Center released a fully recovered turtle but unfortunately received two more seriously injured animals. One sustained serious injuries when her front flippers became entangled in fishing line.

The other actually lost her front flippers and it is doubtful whether she could ever survive in the wild again. Emergency calls for turtles can save their life or their legs. If you see an injured turtle please phone the nearest Coast Guard station (158), the Military Police (156), the Ministry of Environment and Forestry local office (0252. 223 0306), the Mugla office of the Environmental Protection Agency for special areas (0252. 262 2930) or directly to the turtle rehabilitation center (0252.289 0077).

Those wishing to contact Professor Dr. Kaska may do so at caretta@pau.edu.tr This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it and visit a website regarding the caretta sea turtles and the rescue center at http://www.dalyan.org.uk/en/carettaturtles.htm © 2009 Gary S. Lachman

Source – Didim Today

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