Lakshadweep to get sea cucumber conservation area

MUMBAI: The Lakshadweep Islands administration has announced the creation of the world’s first conservation area — 239 sq. km — for endangered sea cucumbers. The announcement came after reports of smuggling of sea cucumbers and other vulnerable marine species for sale in east Asia. HT has been reporting about the illegal trade.

Sea cucumbers are invertebrates ranging in sizes up to six feet (1.8m). The species is high in demand across south-east Asia, mainly China, for food and traditional medicine. In India, the species is listed under Schedule I of the Wildlife Protection Act (WPA), 1972, akin to the protection for a tiger. They cannot be transported in any form for commercial use and are also protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), which India is a signatory. A total ban on harvesting of sea cucumbers was imposed in 2001 under the WPA.

The marine protected area (MPA) covers 685 sq. km of Lakshadweep Islands (including Lakshadweep Sea) in three locations. The first area is spread over 239 sq. km at Cheriyapani called Dr KK Mohammed Koya Sea Cucumber Conservation Reserve. The second is the largest global marine conservation reserve between Amini and Pitti

archipelago, with an area of 344 sq km, declared as Attakoya Thangal Marine Conservation Reserve. The third is the first protected area for marine birds in India across 62 sq. km (named PM Sayeed Marine Birds Conservation Reserve), home to four species of pelagic seabirds — the greater crested tern, lesser crested tern, sooty tern, and the brown noddy. This takes the tally