Turtles wash up dead on Cox's Bazar beach

Carcasses of 11 recovered recently

OUR CORRESPONDENT | Published: February 03, 2024 21:29:21

Photo shows a turtle's carcass lying on Ukhia Sonarpara beach in Cox's Bazar on Friday — FE Photo

COX'S BAZAR, Feb 03: Sea turtles are washing up dead frequently on the Cox's Bazar beach nowadays.
Some 11 carcasses of turtles were recovered from the beach recently.
On Friday (February 2), the dead body of a turtle was found lying on beach in Ukhia Sonarpara of the coastal district. The turtle presumably died 10-12 days ago.
Scientific officer of Bangladesh Oceanographic Research Institute (BORI) Tariqul Islam said that on February 2, local fishermen reported to have seen one dead turtle lying in Sonarpara neighbourhood of the beach.
On examination, the institute authorities assumed that the turtle had died approximately 10 to 12 days ago. Turtles usually at this time come from the sea to the sandy shore to lay eggs. Examination also confirmed that there were no eggs in the stomach of the dead turtle. The authorities also conjectured that the turtle died after being obstructed somehow while laying eggs on the beach sand. Later, the dead turtle was buried into the sand. Experts have assumed several possible reasons for turtle's death. These include getting entangled with fishermen's nets, receiving injuries from trawlers and coming under dogs' attack on the shore. This vulnerability to the reptile's existence is a serious threat to biodiversity. So, everyone should be careful to protect its life.
In addition, a congenial environment should be created to help reproduction of turtles. By setting up a hatchery in two ways, efforts should be made to ensure wholesome breeding of turtles.
Eleven dead turtles were spotted on the beach of Cox's Bazar from October 2023 to February 2,2024. The breeding season of the Olive Ridley turtle is from October to April.
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