On World Sea Turtle Day (June 16), the Two Oceans Aquarium Foundation’s Turtle Conservation Centre, with the support of the Morukuru Family De Hoop and Morukuru Goodwill Foundation, announced that De Hoop Marine Protected Area (MPA) of the De Hoop Nature Reserve has been selected as the latest release site for rehabilitated turtles.
On May 3, for the very first time, the team released two (green) turtles, Amigo and Zelena, into the De Hoop MPA. Both turtles were rescued off this stretch of coast, and this release gave them a second chance at life in the wild.
This first trial release went incredibly well and confirmed to the team that the release programme could comfortably continue in the De Hoop MPA. Guided by initial research, the team set some guidelines for future releases.
Juvenile or young green and hawksbill turtles would likely explore the coastal waters, making them the ideal candidates for release and research in a location like De Hoop.
On May 24, the team returned to De Hoop, celebrating three more successful turtle rescues and releases.
In partnership with the South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity’s Acoustic Tracking Array Platform, the Two Oceans Aquarium Foundation’s Turtle Conservation Centre fixes small, frequency-emitting tags on released turtles.
All along the South African coastline, there are acoustic receivers that capture these frequencies when the animal swims past.
One of the main benefits of De Hoop for turtle conservation is that, in this area alone, there are six active receivers.
This is hopeful for future releases, as green and hawksbill turtles such as Amigo, Zelena, Coral, Siriti, and Amber tend to be coastal in the late juvenile stage. A coastal array of receivers is, therefore likely able to pick up their movements successfully.
Click here to watch the video of Amigo and Zelena’s release into the De Hoop MPA.
