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Written by Abel Buickerood
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Thursday, 10 August 2006 |
i hope you were able to see the moon these past nights from wherever you are. its probably really big and beautiful tonight too. we were staying on a beach on the pacific ocean in nicaragua two nights ago, for the full moon. our friends invited us out on a quest to see the sea turtles. it is the nesting season for the leatherback and ridley sea turtles in nicaragua, now through january. we crossed the river by moonlight, with the warm water up to our wastes. we walked 3 kilometers down the island listening to the water, and watching the waves deliver flashes of light as they broke against the shore. we were observing for turtles tracks, called huelles in spanish, in the sand.
our spanish friend from the basque country was in the front, i felt like he was our naturalist :) we were all so enchanted, but then we started noticing something quite sad. the magic of the evening started to wane as we were passed by bike riders and walkers carring backpacks. there were atleast 30 poachers we passed that night. they came in all ages, from 6 yr old kids to grown men. all are coming for one thing: the eggs of those turtles. abel and i wanted to cry. it still breaks our hearts. those turtles have no chance of survival, and this island is a natural reserve. they are supposed to be protected, yet no one is there to ensure that they are protected. so their eggs will vanish, and soon the mothers will no longer return to this island to nest.
i am sorry this story has a sad ending. some do, unfortunately. but hopefully there is more we can do now that we know what is happening. it is the first time we have ever seen this with our own eyes. it will stay with us for a long time.
love, trish
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Mamma