CANACONA
From a mere four nesting pits in the previous season, the Turtle Rehabilitation Centre presently has 11 pits protecting the Olive Ridley eggs at Galgibaga-Canacona.
Elsewhere in the taluka, there have been 27 nesting pits at the Agonda Turtle Rehabilitation Centre, as opposed to last year's total of 35 nesting pits.
Incidentally, while one set of turtle eggs have been shifted from a beach coast in Salcete, another set of eggs have been shifted from Rajbhag-Tarir to the Galgibaga Turtle Rehabilitation Centre, taking the overall total to 11 nesting pits.
A few days ago, the Galgibaga Turtle Nesting Site had released around 112 hatchlings from its first lot of 117 eggs protected in the pit since January 3.
At the Agonda centre, while the first set of 88 hatchlings from the first protected pit consisting of 118 eggs have been released till December 31, 2021, as many 586 more hatchlings have been released into the sea from 5 other pits protected at Agonda.
According to Range Forest Officer Anant Velip, the forest department (wildlife) has protected a combined 3,824 Olive Ridley eggs in 38 nests at both the Turtle Reserved Beaches in Canacona.
According to forest sources, the services of some residents have been hired to protect the turtle nests at the respective Turtle Rehabilitation Centres.
The forest department has engaged local manpower to protect the Olive Ridley Turtle eggs secured in pits from poachers and stray animals round the clock, as well as to regularly take rounds across the entire beach coast in search of turtle eggs and to relocate them in the pits set up near the nursery at the two Turtle Rehabilitation Centres in Agonda and Galgibaga.
