Context
At least 800 Olive Ridley sea turtles died, their carcasses washed ashore since January 2021, on the beaches of Odisha.
Reasons behind the deaths
- Stucking in fishing nets
- Presence of plastic, polythene and other hazardous material
- Dumping of damaged material
Suggestions for reduction in deaths
- Equipping trawlers with turtle excluder devices (TED)
- Enforcing legislation to use TED in trawler nets
- Preventing fishing in the prohibited zone
- Enhanced vigilance
Olive Ridley Turtle
- The Olive Ridley turtles (Lepidochelys olivacea) are the smallest and most abundant of all sea turtles found in the world.
- They inhabit the warm waters of the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian oceans.
- These turtles are best known for their unique mass nesting called Arribada, where thousands of females come together on the same beach to lay eggs.
- Conservation Status: The species is recognized as Vulnerable by the IUCN Red list.
- Their products is banned under CITES Appendix I.
Major Sites of Olive Ridley Turtle
These are the five major sites where they are found;
- Gahirmatha Beach, Odisha
- Rushikulya River Mouth, Odisha
- Devi River Mouth, Odisha
- Marina Beach, Chennai
- Velas Beach, Ratnagiri
Gahirmatha marine sanctuary
- Gahirmatha Marine Sanctuary is a marine wildlife sanctuary located in Odisha.
- It is the world's largest nesting beach for Olive Ridley Turtles.
- It extends from Dhamra River mouth in the north to Brahmani river mouth in the south.
- It is very famous for its nesting beach for olive ridley sea turtles.
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