Tagged turtle returns to Rushikulya to mate | Bhubaneswar News
Berhampur: Researchers recaptured an Olive Ridley sea turtle in the sea near Rushikulya river mouth in Ganjam district. A male turtle was tagged by scientists from the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) on Dec 23, 2021, at the same spot. “It was recaptured on Jan 14 this year during mating,” said Basudev Tripathy, senior scientist, ZSI.
The ZSI, in collaboration with the forest department, undertook a massive tagging of Olive Ridley turtles from Jan 2021 to 2024. During this period, they tagged around 15,000 turtles that visited the Rushikulya river mouth and Gahirmatha in Kendrapara for mass nesting. The initiative aimed to track the movement of the sea turtles, their life cycles, etc, said Tripathy, also a turtle expert.
He said during their mating period, researchers also spotted some tagged turtles this year, which are under analysis. More tagged turtles are likely to be recaptured at Rushikulya river mouth during the mass nesting expected to take place next month, he said. Earlier, they also found several tagged turtles from Rushikulya river mouth and Gahirmatha, he said. This year, they will not tag the turtles but will monitor their movement.
Before the ZSI tagged the turtles, the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) tagged turtles on the Odisha coast from 1996 to 1999. During their monitoring, they found a turtle from Gahirmatha, which was tagged by the WII, around 25 years after its tagging, he said.
To study the migration pattern, nesting habits, and reproductive longevity of the turtles, a long-term project (at least ten years and to tag around a lakh turtles) is needed. The state govt should formulate a special programme for monitoring Olive Ridley turtles on the state coast, in collaboration with the Central govt and ZSI, he said.
The ZSI, in collaboration with the forest department, undertook a massive tagging of Olive Ridley turtles from Jan 2021 to 2024. During this period, they tagged around 15,000 turtles that visited the Rushikulya river mouth and Gahirmatha in Kendrapara for mass nesting. The initiative aimed to track the movement of the sea turtles, their life cycles, etc, said Tripathy, also a turtle expert.
He said during their mating period, researchers also spotted some tagged turtles this year, which are under analysis. More tagged turtles are likely to be recaptured at Rushikulya river mouth during the mass nesting expected to take place next month, he said. Earlier, they also found several tagged turtles from Rushikulya river mouth and Gahirmatha, he said. This year, they will not tag the turtles but will monitor their movement.
Before the ZSI tagged the turtles, the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) tagged turtles on the Odisha coast from 1996 to 1999. During their monitoring, they found a turtle from Gahirmatha, which was tagged by the WII, around 25 years after its tagging, he said.
To study the migration pattern, nesting habits, and reproductive longevity of the turtles, a long-term project (at least ten years and to tag around a lakh turtles) is needed. The state govt should formulate a special programme for monitoring Olive Ridley turtles on the state coast, in collaboration with the Central govt and ZSI, he said.
