Make way for the Olive Ridley

Birth is considered to be one of the finest moments of nature And if there is one such phenomenon you wish to witness this year let it be this weekend Hundreds of newlyborn Olive Ridley turtles nested along the Vengurla beach will emerge from their shells and wobble towards the sea with their tiny feet bearing the weight of their tinier palmsized shells The Sawantwadi division of the Maharashtra Forest Department is hosting a twoday Turtle Festival of WayanganiVengurla to celebrate the fruition of yet another successful breeding season of the vulnerable species who over the years were subject to massive decline in population due to poachingVisitors watch as the turtles are released into the sealdquoThis weekend will mark the beginning of the season when the eggs laid along the shore by adult Olive Ridley turtles nearly 45 to 55 days ago start hatchingrdquo explained Navakishore Reddy IFS and Deputy Conservator of Forest Sawantwadi Division ldquoThe aim behind hosting this festival is to urge people to come over to these beaches to witness the hatchlings take their first steps on the shore and into the sea This helps the people to connect with the species they learn about the need for and the process of conservation This is also done keeping in mind that locals who spend days and nights conserving these species make a livelihood out of the service or products they sell mdash this could be through rooms to offer accommodation in regional fare they prepare and the guided tours they organiserdquoNavakishore ReddyReddy shares that apart from witnessing the release of turtle hatchlings there will be mangrove safaris workshops and lectures on turtle conservation by experts as well as a community visit to ecotourism expert Konkani Ranmanusrsquo Mangar homestay to explain the benefits of sustainable living and the staging of the mythological Dashavatara drama Kurma Turtle AvatarOne such lecture will be given by the honorary wildlife warden of Sindhudurg Forest Department Nagesh Daptardar who has been an integral part of the conservation projects across these beaches since its inception ldquoThere were days when one would barely see a single hatchling throughout the day but now we record over 36000 hatchlings every year in the districtrdquo Daptardar beams Nearly 24 years ago the wildlife enthusiast started visiting homes of locals in Tambaldeg village spreading awareness about the need for conservation while equally learning from them Slowly he started getting the media involved to highlight the exceptional conservation work done by the localsldquoThey began to get acknowledged and it motivated them to take up it seriously Before we knew it hatchling numbers increased exponentiallyrdquo he revealed While the district is home to five types of turtles namely Olive Ridley Hawksbill Green Sea Loggerhead and Leather Back the most numbers of Olive Ridley hatchlings are known to be spotted in Vengurla ldquoLast year we recorded over 750 hatchlingsrdquo reveals Reddy ldquoWhile this is an annual festival tourists are welcome to spot these hatchlings throughout the season that ends in early MayrdquoOn February 24 to 25At Vengurla Beach Sindhudurg MaharashtraCall 9421175336 for registration enquiries on homestays full itineraryGuidelinesOlive Ridleys hatch out of their eggs during the night time when there are the least chances of being attackedconsumed by a predator Follow these guidelinesgtgt Avoid roaming with your pets on the beach at night they can be viewed as predators by the hatchlingsgtgt Do not play loud music or set up shacks on the beachgtgt Avoid switching on mobile flashlights or creating campfires The turtles will not come out if they see lightgtgt Do not touch an Olive Ridley turtle Experts will be the only ones releasing them These are a Schedule 1 species that are as protected under the law as the Royal Bengal Tigergtgt Do not litter the shoreline or the sea It harms wildlife If you spot plastic strewn around dispose it in the correct manner A cleanup drive by the department will be held after the festival Nagesh DaptardarCool factsgtgt An Olive Ridley turtle egg typically takes nearly 55 days to hatch However due to rising temperatures some have also started hatching within 48 daysgtgt The ideal temperature for the eggs to be in is 27 degree Celsius If this temperature is maintained from the early stages half the eggs will produce male turtles while the other half will produce female turtles Three to four degrees less than the ideal temperature will result in the birth of all female turtles while an increase in the temperature by the same degree will birth all male turtlesOlive Ridley turtles in an enclosed space before they are released into the seagtgt For every 1000 hatchlings that are released into the sea only one per cent is known to survive owing to predators poachers and water pollutiongtgt Adult mother Olive Ridley Turtles return to their place of birth nearly 20 to 25 years later to lay their eggs They have a strong ability to sense the magnetic field and use it for navigation Nagesh DaptardarHow to reachgtgt By road Drive down from Mumbai to Vengurla using National Highway 66gtgt By train Board a KonkanGoabound train that halts at Kudal station A further journey of 22 km will have to be covered via a rented vehicle that is available to help you reach the destination