Turtle Conservation

If successful, the Sri Lankan experiment will work with the local fishing industry to distribute turtle friendly hooks to the rest of the fishermen who currently use J shaped hooks. Studies have revealed that accidental or by-catch fishing using existing methods destroys large numbers of loggerhead and leatherback turtles annually. The Marine Conservation Society reported that the development of the circular hooks by scientists and fishermen has been the turtle conservation success story of the decade. Surveys by conservationists in Sri Lanka have indicated that fishery by-catch is a significant threat to the turtle population. Whilst the large number of hooks already distributed to the fishermen of Sri Lanka represent only a fraction of the hooks needed to turn the by-catch situation around. The Marine Conservation Society is extremely encouraged that the industry has taken such an exemplary step in the right direction to make these fisheries more environmentally sustainable.

With widespread and correct application in Sri Lanka, the introduction of these hooks could result in a ninety percent reduction in the number of turtles accidentally caught by Sri Lanka's long-line fishermen. Sri Lanka is leading the world in the conservation of sea turtles. The Marine Conservation Society has reported that by converting just two fishing vessels to turtle-friendly techniques, up to two hundred juvenile and adult marine turtles could be saved each year. It is estimated that if three kilometres of beach is managed and protected it may be possible to conserving ninety percent of the turtle population visiting. The beaches of Sri Lanka are the nesting grounds for five species of marine turtles: The Green turtle, the Leatherback, the Hawksbill the Loggerhead and the Olive Ridley.