Turtles of the A&N - 4: Different threats

While the beaches in the A&N islands have always been used by sea turtles for nesting, they have also been facing serious threats of various kinds. Here is a representative idea of what these are:

Feral dogs are one of the biggest threats to turtles in these islands. They often attack nesting turtles and as seen in this case dig up freshly laid nests. This is a 1998 picture of a dug up nest of the Olive Ridley in the Cuthbert Bay Sanctuary in Middle Andaman Island

Another big threat has been sand mining from the beaches for the construction industry. This has not only had a negative impact on the turtles, but also led to increased erosion and destruction of the coastline. This is a 1998 picture of truck and tractor tyre marks on the beach of Cuthbert Bay Wildlife Sanctuary

Increased mining of sand and destruction of the coastal vegetation leads to the erosion of the beach as seen here in Hut Bay, Little Andaman. The implications are obvious!

For more pics of turtles on the A&N islands please see

http://3fotosaday.blogspot.com/2009/11/here-are-few-pictures-of-turtle.html
http://3fotosaday.blogspot.com/2009/11/turtles-of-a-1.html
http://3fotosaday.blogspot.com/2009/12/hawksbill-turtles-of-a-3.html