Activities Report of Conservation on Beaches

The project aimed to protect and conserve sea turtle nests on beaches in Panama and Costa Rica. Night monitoring for sea turtle protection and conservation started on February 25, 2012, on San San Beach in Panama, on March 16 on Moín Beach, and on May 23 on Blanca, Puerto Vargas, and Carbón beaches in Cahuita National Park, Costa Rica. A total of 2,238 leatherback turtle nests were counted, distributed as follows: San San Beach - 546, Moín Beach - 1,425, and beaches of Cahuita National Park - 267. Additionally, 58 hawksbill turtle nests were counted, 53 of which were found on the beaches of Cahuita National Park. Furthermore, 72 green turtle nests were counted, with most of them concentrated on Moín Beach (43) and Cahuita beaches (28). A total of 659 leatherback turtle nests, 26 green turtle nests, and 51 hawksbill turtle nests were monitored. The overall eclosion rate for exhumed leatherback turtle nests was 52.05% (SD = 14.86), resulting in 35,919 hatchlings. The eclosion rate for hawksbill turtles was 90.16% (SD = 7.71) for a total of 6,253 hatchlings, and for green turtles, 80.35% (SD = 0.55), resulting in 3,101 hatchlings. These figures should be adjusted for hatchlings born outside of the monitoring period. The number of hatchlings could have been much higher, but nest raiding on Moín Beach was high due to the size of the beach and the large number of egg collectors that concentrate there. On San San Beach, the percentage of nests raided exceeded the figure for the preceding four seasons. A total of 605 female leatherbacks were identified, along with 10 female green turtles, and 5 female hawksbill turtles. The reproductive potential of these females was estimated in 3,600 nests distributed among the target beaches, other beaches, and unprotected areas. The project was made possible through cooperation agreements between USAID and its partners. The Binational Program for Sea Turtles is recommended to be continued to ensure the stability of sea turtle colonies on the Caribbean Coast of Costa Rica and Panama. The project's success was due to the collaboration between WIDECAST and its local and institutional partners, including Chiquita Brands, Ecoparadero de Moín, and the Área de Conservación La Amistad Caribe (ACLAC) of the Ministerio de Ambiente Energía y Telecomunicaciones (MINAET). The sea turtles in the Caribbean region are highly migratory animals that have been severely affected by human activities such as egg collection, habitat destruction, and incidental catch. This has reduced the populations of the different sea turtle species, leading to the development of long-term monitoring programs and nesting site management to try to recover the populations. The leatherback turtle is one of the most critically endangered species worldwide, while the green turtle is listed as endangered, and the hawksbill turtle is critically endangered. The main threats to these species in the Caribbean region of Costa Rica and northern Panama are egg collection, incidental catch, hunting for meat, and the use of their shells for trophies and handicrafts. To combat these threats, conservation programs have been established on beaches in the southern Caribbean of Costa Rica, such as Moín, Blanca, Puerto Vargas, Carbón, and Gandoca, as well as on beaches in the northern Caribbean of Panama, such as San San, Soropta, Larga, and Chiriquí.