Research IntoEndangered Caribbean Turtles Gets Boost From UK Support
United Kingdom marine turtle specialistsfrom the University of Wales, Swansea and the Marine ConservationSociety (MCS) will initiate a 7-day research workshop in the CaymanIslands, which aims to give biologists in the UK Overseas Territoriesnew research skills allowing them to further investigate the statusof their endangered marine turtle populations.
Researchers from Anguilla, Bermuda, BritishVirgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Montserrat and the Turks and CaicosIslands will attend the workshop, which is funded by the Foreignand Commonwealth Office's Environment Fund for the Overseas Territories,and is part of a 3-year UK Government sponsored project calledTurtles in the Caribbean Overseas Territories (TCOT).
FCO Minister Dr Denis MacShane said: 'Thisis the first workshop of its kind to be held in the CaribbeanUK Overseas Territories. The Foreign Office funding is proof ofthis Government's commitment to the conservation of endangeredmarine turtle populations in the region."
The workshop will be coordinated by theTCOT team of specialists from the Marine Turtle Research Groupof the University of Wales Swansea, the Marine Conservation Societyand the University of Western Ontario, and will be hosted by theCayman Island Department of Environment and the Cayman TurtleFarm. Participants will bring their existing skills to the workshopand will be trained in nesting beach surveying, reef surveying,turtle tagging, genetic sampling and analysis, as well as howto conduct socio-economic surveys of turtle fishermen, turtlemeat sellers and tourists.
Since its launch in October last year, theTCOT project has been working with local partners to assess thestatus of endangered marine turtles and their exploitation inthe six Overseas Territories. After 3 years and through a comprehensiveprogramme of scientific research and social surveys, the TCOTteam aims to collect and analyse enough data in order to providethe UK and Overseas Territory Governments with specific recommendationsto improve the conservation management of the endangered turtlepopulations found in each Territory.
"'We are very pleased that biologistsfrom all Overseas Territories in the region are coming to theworkshop," said Dr Brendan Godley, TCOT coordinator fromthe University of Wales. "Only through these long-term capacitybuilding exercises can we hope to ensure that the Overseas Territorieswill be able to carry out the research needed to understand howto successfully conserve their endangered marine turtle populationsfor generations to come."
Turtles in the Caribbean Overseas Territories(TCOT) is a three-year project funded by the UK Department ofEnvironment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), with additional fundingfor training and capacity building initiatives from the UK Foreignand Commonwealth Office Environment Fund for the Overseas Territories(FCO-EFOT). TCOT is coordinated by the University of Wales andthe Marine Conservation Society, in association with the Universityof Western Ontario and the University of Cardiff.
Overseas Territories partners include: Anguilla- Department of Fisheries and the Anguilla National Trust; Bermuda The Ministry of the Environment; British Virgin Islands Conservation and Fisheries Department, BVI National Trust;Cayman Islands Department of Environment, Cayman TurtleFarm; Montserrat Government of Montserrat, Montserrat NationalTrust; Turks & Caicos Islands Department of Environmentand Coastal Resources.
The World Conservation Union (IUCN) recognizesseven species of marine turtle. Four species are known to nestand forage within the UK Overseas Territories in the Caribbean,including the leatherback (Dermochelys coriacea), loggerhead (Carettacaretta), hawksbill (Eretmochelys imbricata) and green (Cheloniamydas) turtles. There are unconfirmed reports of Kemp's ridleyturtles (Lepidochelys kempii) having been spotted in the watersof some Territories. The IUCN lists the hawksbill, leatherbackand Kemp's ridley turtles as critically endangered, whereas thegreen and loggerhead turtles are listed as endangered.
The Marine Turtle Research Group, Universityof Wales Swansea carries out research and conservation projectsregarding turtles in UK waters, Mediterranean and the UK OverseasTerritories including Cayman Islands and Ascension Island. Staffedit the international Marine Turtle Newsletter (www.seaturtle.org/mtn).Contacts: Dr Brendan Godley & Dr Annette Broderick 01792 554139
The Marine Conservation Society (MCS) isthe UK Charity dedicated to the protection of the marine environmentand its wildlife. The MCS Marine Turtle Conservation Programmeis supported by Cheltenham & Gloucester plc. Contact: PeterRichardson 01989 566017
FCO-EFOT provided £31,180 for theworkshop. It has also contributed an additional £62,659over a four year period for the training and capacity buildingelements of the £145,000 DEFRA-funded TCOT project. The£500,000 per annum FCO-EFOT was established in 1999 followingthe White Paper 'Partnership for Progress and Prosperity'. Itsaims are: to support the sustainable management of the environmentof the Overseas Territories and to ensure that their rich biodiversityremains an asset for present and future generations; to increasepublic participation in, and enjoyment of, the economic, socialand spiritual benefits of a healthy environment with a flourishingvariety of natural habitats and species; and to extend the participationof the Overseas Territories in regional and international environmentalactivities. Further information on FCO-EFOT can be found at www.fco.gov.uk/environment or from Trish O'Donnell in the FCO Press Office on020 7270 3114.
Details of the TCOT project can be foundat www.seaturtle.org/mtrg/projects/tcot/index.shtml