Turning PINK for October

I am turning PINK !!!

You can join us too!

Say "NO" to Turtle Eggs!

I need help and participation from everyone, and yes, you too. (",)


Prof Chan, who studied about turtles initiated a campaign to stop the selling and consumption of turtle eggs. Say "NO" to Turtle Eggs is an effort to help retain the critically endangered population of turtles in Malaysia. Leatherback turtles are already extinct! Do we want to wait until Hawksbills, Greens, Olive Ridleys and terrapins to perish as well?

" Many domestic tourists who arrive in Terengganu buy and eat turtle eggs out of curiosity. Even tour guides help sell this activity by saying that it is a “must do” when tourists come to Terengganu. Fueled by an increasing demand, an ever-increasing supply of turtle eggs have found their way into the markets of Malaysia, especially along the east coast. Many of the eggs have been smuggled over from East Malaysia (Sabah and Sarawak) where the sale of turtle eggs have been banned by law. A recent report from Manila has revealed that thousands of turtle eggs are also being smuggled from the Philippines into Malaysia.....[more]"

Here's what you can do :-

1. Be a turtle ambassador - just download the pledge form and send the signatures back to address stated at the bottom of the page.
2. Email turtle@umt.edu.my with your full name, MyKad no. (for aunthentication) and the message, "I pledge NOT to eat turtle or terrapin eggs for the rest of my life".
3. Put up a poster as above in your site and spread the word.
   
4. Make this a noble duty for nature club/societies that you join.
5. Gain signatures & pledge from friends & families.
6. The more the merrier. Make photocopies of the pledge form!!!
   

If we manage to get 1 million signatures by Malaysians, we are en-route to prohibit the selling and poaching of turtle eggs. At the mean time, we only manage 5000. The success of the campaign will halt the unruly demand for turtle eggs in Malaysia. Visit TRRG for more detailed information.

Say "NO" to Turtle Eggs!

Pulau Upeh Turtle Nesting Site

This is a continuation from my visit to Turtle Management Center in Melaka.

Pulau Upeh is one of the main nesting site for Hawksbill turtles in Melaka. This is Pulau Upeh in daylight. The water is murky and dirty. This island also used to be a popular tourist attraction for Melaka a few years back. But, the industry died quickly after the government refused to supply freshwater to the resort. Therefore, you can see there's an abandoned resort situated in the island in the pictures below. The sofas, cupboards, tables and bed were taken out from the resort to the jetty by fisherman who take refuge there.

Thankful I must say, those are the only things that the volunteers and wwf staffs relied on upon arrival every single night. The island was deserted, and we were the only people visible there. In case of emergency, we are equipped only with cellphones. I must salute their endurance for allocating themselves at such dangerous positions. Their working hours span from 10pm to 6am during fasting month to give way to their Muslim boatman.

Upon arrival, all I can see is this...

a single lamp at the broken jetty.

At first, pitch-dark had me experiencing nyctophobia a little but, I got a hang of it after a while. I realize that the absence of light and disturbing inhabitants at the island had actually made it an absolute nesting site for turtles.

Hatchling hatched from the eggs taken from the island were released back at the island to make them commemorate their place of origin. As we waited for the hatchling to find its way to the water, mosquitoes and sand flies (hamar) were happily surrounding every part of our body which is exposed [eventhough we were already 'coated' with insect repellent].

Patrolling on a rotational basis was exhilarating with only the torch light as our companion and lightning making its mark now and then. We were almost too sure that is was going to rain that night.

As the dawn breaks, a storm was visibly seen approaching the island.

It started with strong winds and slight drizzle of rain.

And then, the storm was paving its way to make the shabby jetty look more frightening as things begin flying around. We can barely see the mainland from the jetty by then.

Scary!

There are a lot of faeces enroute to the beach due to the fact that there were cats roaming in the area. The cats can become a threat towards the turtle eggs as food are scarce in the island. As you can see, the resort is located by the beach.

The resort by the beach.
A daily paid assistant, seen here with a book in her hands. All the furniture are taken from the abandoned resort.
A glimpse of the broken jetty that is visibly battered from strong waves and started to wear off without any maintenance.

The speedboat that brace all the strong waves.

To be frank, I've never been this near to a storm in the middle of the sea. The storm halted our journey back the mainland for merely 3 hours before we wade our way back in the rain. I was already soaking wet upon reaching the mainland. Whoa!

This is what I called, an adventure.
Certainly worth experiencing!

International Coastal Cleanup Day

Source : Ocean Conservancy

Today is the-Day!

Gear up and join efforts to help clean up coastal area near you! Project AWARE and Ocean Conservancy are two of the environmental organizations which actively participate in tackling issues regarding marine debris.

This post may come to late for a planning process to take place, but fear not. You may opt to participate cleanup commencing now near your place. Find out where, over here. Some activities are meant for divers which would take place underwater while other cleanup would be carried out at beaches to ease participation. Find out how you can play a role in reducing marine debris all around the world from their respective websites.

Here's what Project AWARE are offering :

Source : Project AWARE

Splash for Trash: International Cleanup Day 20 September 2008

1. Volunteer
2. Organize a cleanup
   
3. Be an AWARE diver

Ocean Conservancy is just one of the best example which had already embark on their mission to clear all the rubbish. And here are the exciting updates from Ocean Conservancy :

Source : Ocean Conservancy

Snap tonnes of pictures during your cleanup sessions? Please share your fantastic stories with O.C. and even your underwater pictures by uploading them to the Coastal Cleanup group on Flickr!

Here's another catch from Ocean Conservancy. Did you find something unexpected during this year's Cleanup like this one from O.C.?

You'll be puzzled by what you found while cleaning up the beaches!! Haha. Post a picture of the item to the Weirdest Finds Flickr group and you might just be a winner of one of the 15 eco-friendly prizes! More about the contest, here.

Well, this meaningful event may just be the last-minute boost to your weekend! I hope you're the get-up-and-go kind. (",)

It is never too late!

7 Guide to Save Biodiversity

I personally agree that the guidelines below are essential to be incorporated by every country around the world if it is a worldwide effort.

This is the simplified version of 7 guide to save biodiversity as proposed by Countdown 2010 :

1. At least 10% of all ecosystem types should be under protection to maintain the space in nature and natural landscapes.
2. Agriculture should be improving farmland diversity and reducing the usage of pesticides and fertiliser are key efforts to saving biodiversity by opting organic agriculture practices.
3. Controlled and monitored fisheries activities towards sustainable use.
   
4. Urban and rural development should consider environment as a priority before embarking on their plan to prevent domination by concrete and pollution.
5. Climate change is considered to be the greatest challenge for humanity and nature. It is an obligation to fight climate change and make sure that species can migrate or adapt to new surroundings.
6. The release of so-called alien invasive species have thrived and destroyed local flora and fauna, therefore reducing these invasions is crucial.
7. Biodiversity concerns need thus be integrated into all areas of policy-making. Measures include market incentives, development assistance, biodiversity-friendly trade and international governance processes are alternatives to gather sustainable development while ensuring economic benefits.

Volunteering at Turtle Hatchery Melaka

This is what I promised.

It is my visit to Turtle Management Center, Department of Fisheries, Melaka more than a week ago. It was managed and run by WWF Melaka. It was a wonderful experience and very tiring as well. At this time of the year, volunteering seems quite silly as the nesting season was towards the end.

But...

I'm really thankful to witness the landing of two female Hawksbill at Padang Kemunting the very night I arrived. I managed to plant their eggs and note the nests too! At the hatchery itself, there were 8 boxes of hatchling emerging and all of them were assessed physically. Then, a rough number of 300 hatchlings were released into the sea at Kem Terendak (the army camp). As I'm the only volunteer at this odd time of the year, I am thrilled and excited to do all the work. Yes, all the work in just one night.

WWF's staff couldn't stop admiring my luck on the first day of my visit. Indeed, I was the lucky one. They told me that previously, some of the past volunteers did not even managed to see any turtle nesting after having been there for 1 week!!!

Work starts at roughly 9pm and ends at 6am. Boy, I was really exhausted at my first day, not accustom to the suddent change of biological clock... Wow, it's a wonder how the staffs did it consecutively every night for all the years!!

OK.
Pictures speak louder than words. So be it.

The incubation room for eggs transported from the island.

The data sheet for the assessment of each turtle hatchling. Imagine having to go through this repeatedly from the 10pm to 3am!

The boxes stacked up after the assessment of hatchling. Plenty huh?!

Inside the incubation room were the organization of boxes. Each was labelled precisely and placed carefully to minimize any movement.

The view of one of the three hatchery in a row.

A close-up view. Notice the box netting that secluded some of the nests? It prevents the soon-to-emerge hatchling from wandering around. It could be a hazard because some of them were squashed by passing vehicles on the road (this hatchery is just by the road).

This is how we note the emerging hatchling. The used-to-be compact sand layer became soft and collapsed in the middle when the hatching move underneath the sand.

This was the huge amount of hatchling for the night. The hatchling were so distracted by the light that they could not stop moving around the styrofoam box.

I can't keep them still even in photographs!

There were shades of colours on the carapace of each baby turtle.

A close-up view.

WOW!!!

So, I've shared my valuable experience here. I'm sure volunteers at Turtle Research & Rehabilitation Group in Chagar Hutang (formerly SEATRU now known as TRRG), Terengganu also went through something similar and as enjoyable as mine. Let's share.

*Sorry for the bad resolution. Blaming it on the bad cellphone-camera, definitely.

Next on Idiosyncrasies.com : Pulau Upeh.

Extinction Alert : Countdown to 2010!

Countdown 2010 was launched in 2004 to alert the public about the status of our biodiversity being at the brink of extinction. It is the global collaboration to promote sustainable livelihood and biodiversity hosted by IUCN. Year 2010 is the selected target year to help save the depleting biodiversity throughout the world.

I'm especially attracted to this site with numerous accountable up-to-date information and statistics on "Facts about Threatened Species". Rest assured, the information provided will not disappoint those who are seeking to find.

Be prepared, the figures are shocking!

• 16,119 species are threatened with extinction, [this may be a gross underestimate because fewer than 3% of the world’s 1.9 million described species have been assessed by the Red List].
• Animals: 7,725
• Plants and lichens: 8,394
• In major species groups, threatened species ranges between 12% and 52%.
• Birds: 12% or 1 in 8
• Mammals: 23% or 1 in 4 are threatened.
• Amphibians: 32% or 1 in 3.
• Turtles and tortoises: approximately 42%
• Conifers: 25% or 1 in 4
• Cycads (an ancient group of plants): 52%

Countdown 2010 aims that all government and public will have the initiative and necessary actions to help bring biodiversity loss to a halt by 2010. They hope the gain max attention in setting up the challenge, while promoting implementation of actions inclined towards the goal. In simple words, it is another global idea to unite government around the globe to have joint actions in combating threatened biodiversity.

"Governments worldwide have promised to save biodiversity by 2010. Countdown 2010 helps them move from words to action."

- Countdown 2010

I month, I week & I day to go!

What a nice combination!

Just love how the way they sound altogether in this DaisyPath announcement ticker. I can't resist to blog about it, after having to view this special combination today. The numbers actually indicates the days left to countdown for 'our' next anniversary.

Haw's been very supportive and tolerant towards my hyper-enthusiasm attitude all these while. I'm glad we both share the same passion in conservation and things we believe in. I'm so thankful that we have stayed side by side each other through good and bad...

I believe it is always up to God's will to have other plans in-stored.
God Bless Us..

Well, the numbers did sound dearly nostalgic to me...

M-I-A

I have been irresponsible in updating my blog. I'm still searching high and low for a camera to record my current love - volunteering.

I have stayed for a few days at Turtle Management Center, Masjid Tanah, Malacca. Will do updates about it soon, I promise.

Have a nice day!