Summer in Portland, Oregon is wonderful. Warm sunny days blend
gradually into crisp nights even at the height of summer, a perfect climate to
explore the Columbia Gorge, Mt. Hood, and the Oregon Coast. So why did I give
up two weeks of my hometown’s best weather to visit the hot, rainy, and buggy
coastal areas of
El Salvador and
Nicaragua?
When you get the opportunity to tag along with some of the
world’s leading turtle conservationists to put satellite tags on possibly the
planet’s most endangered sea turtles, you say yes and start looking at
airfares. Over ten days, I traveled with a small, diverse group of people to
visit four key sea turtle habitats in two countries. We put transmitters on six
turtles at two sites, attended a turtle festival, and met local residents
working to support conservation programs. I will be sharing these experiences
with blog posts, images, and more in the hopes of educating people about the
threats that sea turtles face in this region and how people can participate in
their conservation.
A few of the inspiring people I traveled with included Alex
& Ingrid Gaos, the driving force behind the Eastern
Pacific Hawksbill Initiative, one of the most hopeful turtle conservation
stories out there; Jose Urteaga of Flora and Fauna
International, a National Geographic Emerging Explorer and one of
Nicaragua’s leaders in turtle conservation; and Dr. Jeff Seminoff, director of
Marine Turtle Research at the National Marine Fisheries Service of NOAA. Others
include Randall Arauz, recent winner of the prestigious Goldman Prize and
founder of Pretoma, a leading wildlife
organization in Costa Rica; Enriqueta Ramirez, founder of ViVAZUL and one of El Salvador’s leading
young turtle conservationists; and Liza Gonzalez, current Nicaragua Director
for Paso Pacifico and former director of
the Nicaragua protected area system.
Some researchers believe the hawksbill turtles of this
region are the most endangered population in the world; fewer than 500 nesting
turtles remain at two sites. A network of people are working to bring these
turtles back from the brink while at the same time providing opportunities for
improving the lives of coastal residents near turtle hotspots. I’ll be posting
about how these hawksbills have chosen mangroves over coral reefs (unlike the
rest of their species around the world) and about innovative programs that are
providing optimism for the future of turtles in the region. I hope you will
join me on this exploration to learn about one of the world’s most charismatic
and endangered animals.
