Zoological Survey of India (ZSI), Andaman and Nicobar Regional Centre has initiated study to monitoring the breeding population Leatherback Sea Turtles from 2021-2022 with the following objectives; to document some aspects of the ecology and the reproductive biology of a nesting population of leatherback turtles in Nicobar group of islands; study the morphometrics of eggs, hatchlings, and mature females; nesting behaviour; hatching success; and estimating body mass of leatherback turtles or Dermochelys coriacea. Total of 152 Leatherback Sea turtles have been tagged during this breeding season, and collected morphometric measurements of eggs and adults. This has been informed by Dr Dhriti Banerjee, Director, ZSI today.
According to Dr Chandrakasan Sivaperuman, Scientist-E & Officer-in-Charge, ZSI, Andaman and Nicobar Regional, Port Blair stated that the number of nestings, eggs laid and number of hatchlings has been increasing over the past four years. The number of hatchlings increased at a rate of 21% from 2018 to 2019, while it increased at a rate of 147 % from 2019 to 2020. In the current status, the number of nesting and egg laying has been increased.
The nesting population has the potential to recover from disturbance resulting from the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami, as all human settlements have gone and the region is, therefore, free of anthropogenic predation and light pollution which might affect nesting turtles. However, the populations of this species have increased in Galathea Bay, situated in the island of Great Nicobar of the Nicobar Islands.
It is to be mentioned that the leatherback is the largest of all living turtles. India and Sri Lanka are the only places in South Asia with large nesting populations. Great Nicobar, the southern-most and the largest in the group, supports this sea turtle, with a high abundance of leatherback nests. Large numbers of nesting have been recorded mainly on the long and wide beaches at the mouth of the Dagmar and Alexandera River on the west coast and at the mouth of the Galathea Bay along its south eastern coast.
The leatherback nesting population in the Nicobar is one of the four colonies that exceeds 1000 individuals in the Indo-Pacific, and hence of global significance. The southern bay of Great Nicobar is Southeast Asia’s largest leatherback turtle nesting site.
According to available literature, in Galathea Beach, a total of 255 nests were monitored and estimated that 114 individuals nested during the season between November 2003 and February 2004 and during November 2004, 137 leatherbacks were encountered with 84 nesting. During the last three breeding season i.e., an average of 450 nesting was observed in Galathea Bay, stated Dr Sivaperuman.
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