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About Cape Verde

The journey

It has been suggested that the salt-water switch that the tag needs to work became jammed and has now worked itself free. Other turtles released at the same time only sent signals for a matter of weeks before their tags failed. Maggie has covered 5,826kms on her incredible journey and since loggerheads nest every two to three years, she may even be seen on one of our beaches this summer.

For more information view the link here

turtlesos.org

The workshop will cover basic biology and life cycle, conservation and protection activities and how to get involved.  Beginning at 7pm at Turtle House, Tuesday’s workshop is in English and Wednesday’s will be in Portuguese, other languages can be catered for on request.  For more information and for directions to Turtle House please email info@turtlesos.org or call 974 5020.

Rubbish on the beaches can deter turtles from nesting and hinders hatchlings on their way to the sea.

Unfortunately, in common with all marine turtles, loggerheads are under extreme threat of extinction. In Cabo Verde there are pressures from illegal hunting, poaching of eggs and loss of habitat through development.

At a recent workshop held on Sal for everybody involved in turtle conservation in Cabo Verde, a new coalition – The Capeverdian Sea Turtle Network was formed to ensure a more cohesive and effective strategy.

Delegates from the Department of the Environment, Fisheries Department and Camara Municipais from many of the islands stated their determination to ensure the survival of loggerhead turtles in Cabo Verde through increased protection and legislation.

Not only this, but many are also aiming to increase the population so substantially that Cabo Verde will overtake their two rivals and become the world’s most important nesting site for loggerheads!

This year should see a substantial decrease in the mortality of nesting female turtles, with new initiatives being started on Boa Vista, Maio, Sao Vicente, Santo Antao, Sao Nicolau and Fogo.

On Sal island, SOS Tartarugas will continue to work with the Camara Municipal, the military, martime and national police forces to improve on the 72% reduction of dead turtles that was achieved last year.

The first turtles are expected in the next two weeks and it is still possible to become involved. Part time Rangers of all nationalities are welcome and a commitment of only a few hours a week could make a big difference.

Please help us with a beach clean up on World Ocean’s Day June 7th from 8am – midday (come when you can) on Costa Fragata. Followed by a barbeque at Grijinha. For more information call Neal on 00238 976 9681.

For more information on volunteering call 00238 974 5020 or email info@turtlesos.org.

For information on night time turtle walks (starting approximately last week in June) call 00238 974 5019 or email neal@turtlesos.org

Visit our website www.turtlesos.org

What does SOS Tartarugas do?
• Deter hunting through night time beach (June to October)
• Collection of scientific data to improve conservation efforts
• Relocation of ‘at risk’ nests (flooding, destruction by vehicles, poaching, brightly lit areas & pollution)
• Incubation under natural conditions in a hatchery (June to December) and immediate release (hatchlings lose their instincts if they are kept in unnatural conditions and are unlikely to survive)
• Protection of beaches through clean ups and discouraging illegal practices such as driving on beaches and removal of sand for building
• Outreach activities including conducting guided walks for residents and visitors.

Cabo Verde’s Loggerhead Nesting Season

March, April, May
Male and female loggerheads are seen in the surrounding waters. Mating can be observed from boats and by divers.

June & July
Female turtles come ashore to lay their nests. The exact start and end date varies from year to year depending on temperature and other factors. Both male and females are still seen in the water and may be migrating between islands.
On Sal, turtles nest on every bit of sandy beach and while many return to exactly the same beach, some will lay their nests on different parts of the island.

In 2008 the first turtle track was seen on the 12th June.

August & September
Nests are still being laid, usually peaking in mid August. The first of the hatchlings will be born in the middle of the month, approximately after around 56 days incubation.

October
Nests are still being laid but the frequency is much lower. The last tracks seen on Sal in 2008 was 27th October.

November & December
Babies continue to be born during these months and the incubation period is longer, probably due to the lower temperature. The last nest to hatch in 2008 on Sal was on 25th December.

Adopt a Turtle

Type of adoption

Adopt a hatchling €10.00 Adopt a nest €40.00

We will contact you by email

Make a donation to SOS Tartarugas

Since it’s formation, RevoluSal has organised:
Beach & coastal cleanups: removing rubbish from several sites of outstanding natural beauty around Sal
Surf Events & Training: bringing surfers together from all of the islands to compete at some of the best surf spots in the world
Social events: getting kids off the streets and working together in social programs

Get involved
RevoluSal is run and funded by volunteers and is recruiting surfers and Life members .Whether you are a surfer of many years or if you simply want to be involved in something positive here in Sal, a small donation or to simply join in a Clean-Up session makes all the difference. The clean ups are a lot of fun and are a great way of meeting and interacting with the young surf community – remember the beaches are there for everyone to enjoy.

If you would like more information or to find out about the next Clean-Up day contact info@revolusal.org or visit the official site RevoluSal.org

RevoluSal Contacts

Board of Directors
+ President | Daniel Obradovic
+ Vice President | Edir Lopes
+ Secretary | Filomeno Carvalho
+ Treasurer | João Silva Almeida
+ Substitute | Fred Wilson Cruz Duarte

General Assembly
+ Table President | Fredy Harley Fortes
+ Table Vice Pres. | Roberto Espirito Santo
+ Table Secretary | Dunia S.L. Obradovic

Watch Committee
+ President | Ricardo Xavier Bettencourt
+ Vice President | Valdir Duarte Brito

Source Yubanet.com

Cited by Cape Verdean news agency Inforpress, Lopes said that the farms, which represent an investment of 50 million euros, will be set up on the islands of Santiago, Sal, Boavista and Sao Vicente, and will have capacity to generate 28 megawatts.

“The project is being carried our in its entirety by the Government and its partner. The tender has been launched and all technical studies and preliminary conditions for its implementation carried out,” said Lopes.

At the moment, the contract phase for supply of machines and installation was underway, Lopes said, adding that so far four proposals had been received from international companies, with which Cape Verde is negotiating.

Meanwhile the director-general for Energy has said the next step is to identify a partner to manage the park as, according to him, neither the State nor state electricity company Electra will manage this company.

InfraCo is a company that develops infrastructures with funding from donors, acting as an “honest intermediary” and balancing the interests of government, national and international private companies and providers of funding.

InfraCo’s capital is obtained via subscriptions from members of the Private Infrastructure Development Group (PIDG), which currently is made up of the development agencies of Austria, Ireland, the Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the World Bank.

Source: macauhub

Small amounts of subsistence hunting of turtles may have been sustainable in the past but with modern fishing causing massive bycatch loss and rapid beachfront development a stable population can suddenly go into a steep and irreversible decline.

There are seven species of marine turtles – all of them endangered and the sea around Cabo Verde is visited by five of these species – Green, Leatherback, Olive Ridley, Hawksbill and Loggerhead.

There are records of four species nesting in Cabo Verde, but three of these have been hunted to extinction and now it is only the Loggerhead that nests here. It is only recently that the world has become aware of how significant this population is and now Cabo Verde is thought to be the third largest Loggerhead nesting area in the world and one of the least studied.

With that recent understanding comes the realisation that they are under serious threats and that without urgent action Loggerheads could also become extinct here in as little as eight years.

The threats are many and varied and although brutal and bloody hunting is the headline grabber, probably the most serious threat to turtles in Cabo Verde is the massive amount of coastal development and the building of marinas.

Unsympathetic development causes degradation to nesting beaches as well as acting as a deterrent for turtles to come ashore because of light pollution and obstructions such as fences and beach furniture. In addition, development inevitably brings an increase in marine pollution and debris.

Other problems include the illegal mining of sand for building, egg predation and destruction of nests by vehicles. In Sal it is calculated that in 2007 70% of nests were destroyed by quad bikes and cars breaking the law by driving on the beach.

Loggerhead turtles spend the majority of their time at sea and cover vast distances over a lifespan that could be as long as 50 years. The first few years, in common with all turtles, are a mystery to scientists and are known as ‘the lost years’. It takes a long time for them to reach maturity – breeding only occurs at around 20 years of age and although they are essentially marine animals they are still compelled to return to land when it is time to give birth. Males may never be on dry land again once they have left as hatchlings.

When they are ready to lay their eggs female turtles use their incredible navigational ability to return to the beaches where they were born. They will spend two or more hours ashore as they labouriously chose the right spot, dig a pit and release an average of 80 white ping-pong ball size eggs. They will then spend time carefully replacing the sand in an effort to disguise the nest. The hatchlings will emerge after 56-70 days depending on temperature and other factors. The sex of the hatchlings also depends on temperature – the lower the nest temperature, the more males are born

The main nesting areas in Cabo Verde are found on Boa Vista, Maio and Sal and the nesting and hatching season lasts from June to December.

Any activity that harms or disturbs turtles in Cabo Verde is illegal but unfortunately, so far, there have been insufficient resources available to fully protect them.

2008 however seems to have been a turning point and government has published the first ever national plan to protect marine turtles. In addition, various departments along with NGOs (Non Governmental Organisations) such as SOS Tartarugas implemented a number of strategies designed to safeguard the beaches and the turtles.

SOS Tartarugas operated on Sal during 2008 and one of the priorities for the season was to prevent the killing of turtles for meat. Activities included the training of Wildlife Rangers, the designation and signage of official quad trails, an educational programme, information boards on beaches and in towns, research, turtle walks, the relocation of nests from high-risk areas to a hatchery, beach clean-ups and a volunteer programme.

The programme was very successful and resulted in an overall reduction in dead turtles of 72%. That means from 1 in 9 turtles killed to 1 in 62. Many of those were saved through direct intervention by Rangers or police. In addition, 5,517 baby turtles were released from the hatchery.

Only by making it totally unacceptable to harm or disturb turtles and demonstrating how valuable they are can we ensure the continued presence of these amazing and enigmatic animals in Cabo Verde. As a visitor or a resident you too can do something to help.

• Never buy or consume any turtle products and report anybody who tries to sell you products or live turtles.

• Do not support captive turtle ‘attractions’ they are illegal and detrimental to the turtles.

• Go on a turtle walk with an authorised guide and visit the hatchery (June to December) then talk to everyone about your experience!

• If you own property install turtle friendly lighting, you won’t notice the difference but it is invisible to turtles.

• Choose a turtle friendly developer, hotel or excursion provider

• Never drive cars or quads on nesting beaches. If you visit the beach at night do not use lights or make excessive noise. Obtain information about how to watch turtles without disturbing them. Preferably only go turtle watching with a qualified guide.

• Get involved – sign up as a volunteer to patrol beaches, help in the hatchery or clean the beaches. If you live here you could become a ranger. See the website for more opportunities.

• Make a donation of money or materials.

For more information visit www.sostartarugas.org email info@sostartarugas.org or phone 974 5020.

SOS Tartaurugas 2008 End of year Statistics
Total number of turtle emergences : 1,238
Beach with the most activities : Black Sand Beach (Algodoeiro/West Coast in front of Cotton Bay)
The beach with the most nests was Ponta Jelonga with 47 (just north of Igrijinha)
Most surprising area was to the east of Santa Maria (beyond Leme Bedje) where 36 turtles came ashore among all the rocks and rubbish (oh yes, the turtles are crazy)
Total number of turtles killed was 39, the majority at Mont Leao (13)
The number of turtles saved by direct action by Rangers or police was 19
The total number of turtles tagged was 101.
Total number of nests 346
Total number of nests in the hatchery 89 (26% of nests relocated)
The largest nest recorded had 153 eggs, the smallest had 15 eggs (average 81 eggs).
The first nest hatched on the 12th August and the last on Christmas Day, December 25th
The average incubation time in the hatchery was 59 days.
The average incubation time for nests on the beach was 56 days.
Babies born in the hatchery 5,517