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BajaBruno
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Thanks for posting, Wilderone. At least we now know that some conservation organization(s) is aware of the problem and these photos aren't being
published in the dark.
Christopher Bruno, Elk Grove, CA.
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MrBillM
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Turtle Misfortune
Tasting Good.
Wailing about lack of enforcement is ludicrous. The Mexican authorities can't even mount effective enforcement against the Drug trade. To think that
they're going to mount any serious campaign against poarchers is silly.
This is the Third-World where scrapping to stay alive is a daily battle for too great a percentage of the population. They tend to be totally
unimpressed with Conservation measures so dear to we who are comfortable in our lives.
I remember years ago reading of the extensive destruction being done to the reef systerms in the Philippines by fishermen using explosives to blow the
fish to the surface.
People scraping by don't think much about anything else.
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toneart
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| Quote: | Originally posted by MrBillM
Tasting Good.
Wailing about lack of enforcement is ludicrous. The Mexican authorities can't even mount effective enforcement against the Drug trade. To think that
they're going to mount any serious campaign against poarchers is silly.
This is the Third-World where scrapping to stay alive is a daily battle for too great a percentage of the population. They tend to be totally
unimpressed with Conservation measures so dear to we who are comfortable in our lives.
I remember years ago reading of the extensive destruction being done to the reef systerms in the Philippines by fishermen using explosives to blow the
fish to the surface.
People scraping by don't think much about anything else. |
I am not sure that was intentional, but Senor Billum got off a pretty realistic assessment of the situation. It was not racist and it pretty well
identified the underlying cause of turtle poaching, netting and conservation in general.
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Dave
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Good thing this thread wasn't about people slaughter
Probably would have gotten zero response. 
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wilderone
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They overlook the oh so obvious - they're scraping by now, contrasted to the past, where they had turtles, fish, abalone, urchins UNTIL THEY WIPED
THEM OUT. Some fishermen are now fully understanding the repercussions of their actions and have come to appreciate the value of conservation,
preservation, sustainability; hence, abalone farms, helping with turtle repopulation, self-governing co-ops, adhering to limits/laws. The problems
still remain, but the pressure to change had made an impact in the past decade. More recently, as seen in Loreto, town meetings, unionization, more
enforcement will hasten preservation and protection. With that model, coupled with the reality of corpses on the beach and more NGOs making noise and
showing up, I am hopeful the tide will turn. There are fishing regulations in the South Pacific stating exactly how turtles are to be released when
found in fishing nets. The reasons for regulation are the same world-wide - just a matter of time until Mexico catches up. All fisherman strive to
make a living from their trade, regardless which country they're from - of course - regulations apply across the board as to the industry - no reason
that Mexican fisherman should be exempt. If they fished sustainably in the past generation, there wouldn't be regulations now. The time has come.
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wilderone
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"Good thing this thread wasn't about people slaughter
Probably would have gotten zero response"
It's in off-topic, ad nauseam
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Don Alley
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Illegally poached and eaten turtles remains are not taken to a remote beach for disposal. These were bycatch fatalities, and as far as I know no laws
were broken.
"This is the Third-World where scrapping to stay alive is a daily battle."
Third World people scraping by to make a living don't fly helicopters.
These are not poor people's fishing boats:
http://tunaseiners.com/blog/nggallery/page-1073/
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24baja
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Good point Don!
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toneart
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I think it is both, Don: Seiners and poor fishermen scraping to get by.
As Pompano once said, Shrimp boats, Seiners, etc. make good reefs when sunk. Let's organize an underground Greenpeace, without the "peace'. Any former
Seals want to join me?
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wilderone
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I also received this reply from Mr. Peckham of ProPeninsula:
(SEE NOTE ABOUT MEETING TODAY AT LOPEZ MATEOS - SHOW UP AND SPEAK OUT)
"Thank you for your heartfelt appeal about the sea turtle graveyard at Playa San Lázaro, BCS Mexico.
The turtles in your foto are primarily loggerhead turtles that died primarily due to accidental bycatch in local fishing gear. Hundreds of carcasses
have washed up each of the past six summer fishing seasons due to what are apparently the highest sea turtle bycatch rates documented worldwide. I’ve
attached a couple of recent papers offering more detailed information. The high bycatch rates result from the overlap of local fisheries with
incredibly high numbers of juvenile turtles that aggregate off BCS to forage their way to maturity.
We launched Proyecto Caguama, a community-based initiative to reduce this bycatch, by building long term partnerships with local fishers to both
assess and mitigate the bycatch while maintaining fisheries livelihoods. We have made great progress in co-developing cleaner fishing techniques and
alternatives. As a result, bycatch rates have decreased in recent years. See the attached forthcoming book chapter and newspaper clipping in english
for some more positive information, though the problem remains.
You write at an auspicious time, Cindi, because tomorrow, Tuesday 30 June, Mexico’s DGVS (Department of Wildlife) is convening a multi-agency and
stakeholder meeting in Puerto Lopez Mateos. High ranking representatives from all local fishing cooperatives and fedecoops plus relelvant federal and
state agencies will be meeting with the express purpose of addressing fisheries management and bycatch issues in the region.
If you are in the region, one way you could help the problem would be to visit Lopez Mateos to see the graveyard during the summer fishing months and
sharing your concern directly with local fishermen. And please send the friends you referred to in your attached note as well.
My best,
Hoyt PECKHAM, PhD
director, proyecto caguama
propeninsula / grupo tortuguero
http://www.propeninsula.org
hoyt@propeninsula.org
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bill erhardt
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Attached is a photo of one of the juvenile tortugas Dr. Pecham refers to in his letter. When I spotted it off Isla Magdelena while fishing last fall
I approached it thinking it was probably dead, but it was alive and well.
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bill erhardt
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This one, bloated and floating high, was not so lucky having almost certainly encountered either a net of one of the shrimpers plying the area, or of
a local fisherman. Such a find in the Sea of Cortez would almost invariably be host to a bonanza of dorado, and the first 30 or 40 I came across when
I started fishing outside the island, I approached expecting to fill my fishbox. There is so much similar "floating structure" in the area, however,
that a particular corpse is seldom holding fish.
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wilderone
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More info from Dr. Peckham:
http://www.int-res.com/articles/esr2008/theme/Bycatch/bycatc...
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Dave
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I understand
| Quote: | Originally posted by wilderone
"Good thing this thread wasn't about people slaughter
Probably would have gotten zero response"
It's in off-topic, ad nauseam |
You consider turtles deserving of your love and protection and humans a nauseating nuisance.
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wilderone
Ultra Nomad
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"You consider turtles deserving of your love and protection and humans a nauseating nuisance."
um - I believe a reading comprehension problem twisted my post.
People slaughter - the war - politics - blah blah blah is discussed to a nauseating degree - within Off Topic - which is where people go to spout such
views - and has nothing to do with Baja CA.
That's not to say that humans on Off Topic can't be a nuisance, or that one can't get nauseous from other humans which can be a nuisance.
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