The Forest Department in Ramanathapuram district on Sunday rescued an adult Olive Ridley turtle that was caught in a fishing net and released it into the Palk Bay at Panaikulam seashore on Sunday.
Ramanathapuram Forest Range Officer S. Sathish said that department personnel rushed to the spot on Sunday after local fishermen informed officials that an Olive Ridley turtle was caught in a fishing net.
The adult turtle weighed around 35 kg, the forest range officer said.
“Usually, the nesting season for Olive Ridley turtles starts by December. The mating of these turtles happen two months prior to the nesting. So, it is common to find turtles within one km from the shore during this time of the year. It is because of this reason that turtles often get entangled in the fishing net during this period,” he added.
But, it is important to safely rescue the turtles from the fishing nets without injuring them.
“Sometimes, fishermen tend to cut the turtle’s flippers in order to save the fishing net. Earlier, people used to kill the reptile for its meat. But through repeated awareness given to the fishermen, such instances rarely happen in the area nowadays,” he added. A.S. Marimuthu, Wildlife Warden, Ramanathapuram, said that the contact number of Forest Department officials were shared with the local residents and fishermen.
“The locals, especially the youth, are showing more interest in informing the officials whenever an Olive Ridley turtle is found in the region. Because of the cooperation of the fishermen, we have been rescuing more number of Olive Ridley turtles nowadays,” he said.