TurTle proTecTors
Slap! Slap! Slap! Goes the flippers of the sea turtle I‘m gently holding. Its powerful hind legs leave red marks on the back of my hands. “Alright, alright! I‘ll release you in a minute. Calm down,“I mutter under my breath, hoping that all that ‘slapping‘ would cease. The little one has been affectionately named Malaysia-Brunei, as a nod to the two countries tasked to release it. But I‘m more inclined to call it Slappy — for obvious reasons. Weighing probably just about a kilogramme and with the shell roughly the circumference of my face, you wouldn‘t have thought that it can pack so much strength.
Before I even get the chance to place it gently on the sandy beach, the turtle manages to free itself from my grip by forcefully kicking into my hands. “Plop“it falls onto the ground. Ignoring my startled yelps, it hurriedly scurries away, making a beeline for the water‘s edge that leads into the Gulf of Thailand like a baby seeing its mother for the first time. The eager ‘Slappy‘ is one of thousands of turtles being rehabilitated or reared by the Royal Thai Navy at the Sea Turtle Conservation Centre in Sattahip, about two hours‘ drive away from Bangkok. The closest town is Pattaya.
However, don‘t even bother searching for directions to the centre on Google maps. Because of its location inside the Royal Thai Navy base, the area is highly restricted. To gain access, one would need to call ahead for a special pass, or follow a special tour, like the one Luminox is hosting for us, a select group of media, as part of its Essential Sea Mission event.
“Are we there yet?“someone whines from the back of the bus. And just before the host can answer, the vehicle slows down and comes to a halt. The absence of a GPS signal coupled with a scenery made up of just rows and rows of coconut trees make me wonder whether we‘re actually headed in the right direction. The landscape reminds me a lot of the kind of landscape that we can find in the northern parts of Malaysia. The only thing to remind us that we‘re actually in Thailand are the signages in the Thai language.
“Oh, we‘re here!“someone exclaims, pointing to a large white wall next to the guardhouse, which has scrawled on it the words: ‘Sattahip Navy Base‘. Suddenly, two officials clad in light brown uniforms and thick combat boots on their feet appear beside our bus. Their faces serious and a notebook clasped in their hands, they scrutinise us through the windows.
After a rather long pause, we‘re given the all clear and our bus resumes its journey, slowly trudging along a quiet road leading to the entrance of the Sea Turtle Conservation Centre. Some friendly off-duty naval officers wave and smile as we pass.
The roof of the conservation‘s media centre is designed to resemble the shape of a turtle. But aside from the protruding round ‘head‘, nothing about it looks turtlelike, I think to myself. But that doesn‘t matter. Just like primary school kids on an excursion, we‘re just excited to be here. The sight of the little creatures swimming in the numerous rearing pools elicits squeals of delight from some members of our group.
The Royal Thai Navy is no stranger to being heroes to these baby turtles or hatchlings. They‘ve been playing a crucial role in the protection of sea turtles since the 1950s, first by implementing small restrictions such as avoiding training in certain areas of the beaches around Sattahip during the nesting season.
As the population of sea turtles deteriorated, the Thai government declared that some marine and coastal areas facing the Gulf of Thailand, including Khram, Ira and Chan Islands would become part of a military zone. Under the Military Safety Zone Act (1935) and the Fishery Act (1947), these protected areas were reserved for sea turtle nesting.
Every day in the wee hours of the morning, a group of naval officers would be dispatched to monitor the beach for intruders, poachers and animal predators. These are considered peak hours, a time when hatchlings would dig their way out of the cool sand and head for the waters, or when mother sea turtles would come up to the beach to nest.
Whenever an officer finds a nest, he‘ll collect and relocate the eggs to the hatchery. Once the eggs are hatched, the hatchlings that emerge would be transferred to the various nursery ponds for rearing. Most of these ‘babies‘ are raised for three to six months before being released back into the sea. Some sea turtles however, are kept for a longer period to be used in public ceremonial releases, just like little Slappy.
And on days they don‘t find any turtle nests, the naval officers would clean the beaches and ensure that they‘re in good condition for sea turtles to lay their eggs.