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Leatherback Conservation on the Pacific Coast of Nicaragua

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Felicitaciones to our friends at Fauna & Flora International. Their Leatherback Conservation project was named Eco-Index Eco-Initiative of the Month:

Through this project, Fauna and Flora International (FFI) aims to contribute to the conservation of the critically endangered leatherback turtles on the three most important nesting beaches of Nicaragua’s Pacific Coast. This goal builds on FFI’s progress in beach monitoring and capacity building since 2002, and implements critical elements of the Pacific Marine Turtle Strategy in Nicaragua. In addition, FFI will extend its successful protection and monitoring programs at Juan Venado beach and Chacocente Wildlife Refuge to the newly discovered Salamina beach, which could potentially become Nicaragua’s most important leatherback marine turtle nesting beach, and central to ongoing efforts to conserve this species.

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This week only, you can support Paso Pacífico by participating in this e-Bay auction for one of eight solar powered, designer handbags. Proceeds will go to supporting Paso Pacífico’s program in partnership with Portable Light, which distributes solar-powered lights to women and children in energy-poor Nicaraguan communities. For the many families without electricity, simple nightly tasks like finishing homework or cooking dinner become possible for the first time. Additionally, Paso Pacífico and Portable Light worked together to develop a prototype suitable for use in the field, which includes a soft red light that allows our sea turtle rangers in Nicaragua to monitor these light-sensitive animals without disturbing them.

Elle Magazine, Portable Light, and eight acclaimed fashion designers, such as Tommy Hilfiger and Diane von Furstenberg, collaborated to create the handbags, each outfitted with flexible solar panels that power HBLED lights, USB ports, and a battery pack which allows you to charge your iPod, camera, or phone. These one-of-a-kind bags are on auction THIS WEEK only, until July 15th. All proceeds from the auction will go to Paso Pacífico and Portable Light’s other partners, giving us the resources to continue our mission to protect the environment while empowering local communities. Place your bid today, and be one of the first to join in a new era for fashion and sustainable energy!

For more information about Paso Pacífico and this project, visit our website or watch a Flickr slideshow to see photos of the Portable Lights in action.

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“The ocean is a dynamic and rapidly evolving environment, a long-appreciated truth which becomes increasingly apparent as we observe it ever more carefully.”

Last month, Science magazine ran a special issue on ocean science and ocean conservation. We especially liked the updates on new technologies for studying the ocean. Two such examples are buoys and fiber-optic cables.

  • Buoys: There are now over 4000 science buoys in the world’s oceans, gathering temperatures, wave heights, wind speeds, water conductivity profiles, and helping scientists understand ocean dynamics better than ever before.
  • Fiber-Optic Cables: Strung from shore and across the ocean floor, fiber-optic cables are gathering data on crustal dynamics and deep-sea ecosystems.

We were also interested in the piece on ocean garbage patches:

Chances are you’ve heard of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, the vast mass of floating debris midway between Hawaii and California that is twice the size of Texas. Although many media stories conjure up a chunky soup of bottles and tires, it is mostly an unstrained consommé of small bits of floating plastic. And it isn’t the only one. A similar accumulation of plastic particles—which include weathered fishing line, Styrofoam, wrappers, and raw resin pellets—has shown up in the North Atlantic Ocean. But the potential harm to marine life is far from clear.

Most of the floating debris is small enough that it’s difficult to determine what happens to it. It’s also small enough to be ingested by marine life low on the food chain. Further study is necessary to understand what is happening to plastic particulate and how much of its chemicals are absorbed into animal tissue.

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Paso Pacífico’s sea turtle program is made possible through collaboration and information sharing with scientists around the world. Our work with the Eastern Pacific Hawksbill Initiative (ICAPO) focuses on the Hawksbill turtle, one of the rarest, most endangered sea turtles in the Eastern Pacific. Last year, Paso Pacífico and scientists from this network successfully placed the first satellite tag on a Hawksbill Sea Turtle in Nicaragua, allowing us to track the path of two Hawksbill turtles through the ocean and learn more about their migration patterns and foraging habits.

This month, the network is holding its “2nd Workshop on Hawksbill Sea Turtles of the Eastern Pacific” in Nicaragua. This meeting will bring together conservation scientists across the region to discuss innovative conservation tools for saving this beautiful turtle from extinction.

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FireDogLake posts on the continuing challenges of the gulf oil spill:

The Pensacola News Journal states that heat indices of 114 have regularly been observed on the beach there. It should not be surprising then, that with the health of cleanup workers in mind, the efforts are being moved to nighttime, when conditions are much more tolerable. Sadly, however, lighting Florida beaches at night is a huge mistake, because hatchling sea turtles orient towards the brightest part of the horizon. Sadder still, we are now at the time of year when these turtles are hatching and trying to return to the sea from the onshore nests where the eggs hatch.

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Our friends at SeaTurtle.org remind us that there are a number of sea turtles that are being actively tracked by satellite in the Gulf of Mexico. They are also aggregating news on the oil spill: http://www.seaturtle.org/news/

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Tropical forests store a fifth of the world’s carbon emissions, making our conservation efforts in Central America a particularly important climate change solution.

Last month, we partnered with Nicaraguan NGO FUNDENIC to host a well-attended forum on the Climate Change-related Challenges and Opportunities for Biodiversity in Nicaragua. Our Executive Director, Sarah Otterstrom, presented on “Components for Adaptation to Climate Change Impacts. Other presenters included Tim Lattimer, the US Department’ of State’s Environmental Director for Central America; Tito Sequeira, from the Coalition of Rainforest Nations. and Dr. Jaime Incer Barquero of Fondo Natura and FUNDENIC. 

Nicaragua is already vulnerable to extreme weather conditions, and the frequency and severity of extreme storms is likely to increase with climate change in coming years. In fact, Nicaragua is considered the third most vulnerable country globally to extreme weather events, according to the 2009 Global Climate Risk Index, thus the need to protect the country’s natural resources is becoming ever more critical. Forums such as this are important for increasing dialogue and developing adaptive responses to climate change impacts.

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Paso Pacifico Board Member Rick Smith just forwarded the latest article from the National Parks Traveler:

Creature Feature: The Kemp’s Ridley Sea Turtle Faces an Uncertain Future

The Kemp’s ridley may be little as sea turtles go, but its got big problems. It was already the world’s most endangered marine turtle before the mammoth Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico threatened to wreak havoc on its vital habitat.

These are perilous times for the Kemp’s ridley sea turtle (Lepidochelys kempi). Having been reduced to a small fraction of its historic population, and now assailed by the impacts of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, the slowly recovering L. kempi population remains too close to extinction for comfort. Much will depend on continuing efforts to save it. It’s the most sweeping campaign yet mounted in behalf of a marine turtle species.
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All of this is certainly not to say that the Kemp’s ridley is doomed. In fact, things have been looking up for the species. Over 6,000 nests were counted in 2000, and while that’s nowhere near the 40,000+ of the historic arribadas, it’s 30 times the number recorded in the 1970s and 1980s. The total population of mature Kemp’s ridleys is now thought to be in the neighborhood of 8,000. Full recovery is no longer just a dim prospect.

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From this month’s Pelican Eyes newsletter:

Stones and Waves Vet Clinic continues to thrive, under the leadership of Elvis Cortez, and the financial support of World Vets. The next clinic is scheduled for this week at the Escuela Agricultura in Rivas. In addition, great progress has been made with the animals that previously lived at the hotel. All of the dogs and the majority of cats have been adopted out to good homes, thanks to the tireless effort of Katie Horn, now with World Vets, Paso Pacifico, and Elvis of Stones and Waves Vet Clinic. The 8 spider monkeys that once resided at Pelican Eyes have all been relocated to a spacious wildlife reserve in Nandaime. The removal of cats has already cleared the way for Nicaragua’s natural wildlife to return to Pelican Eyes. Numerous bird species, butterflies, and iguanas have all begun to return to their natural habitats here among the Pelican Landscape. Hummingbird feeders have been installed throughout the property, as well.

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