Turtle care

The municipal government of Maitum, Sarangani recently released 657 marine turtle hatchlings into the Celebes Sea in line with the observance of International Ocean Month. The sea turtles, belonging to the olive ridley (lepidochelys olivacea) and green sea turtle (shelonia mydas) species, were the latest batch released from the nesting site at the Barangay Kiambing Pawikan Learning Center.

The hatchlings sum up to around 2,000 hatchlings nurtured and released back to the sea, making it one of the most productive months. Over 4,000 eggs are nurtured in Kiambing and other nesting sites along Maitum’s municipal shorelines (inset photo). The hawksbill sea turtle (Eretmochelyz imbricata) species will be hatched in July and released into the sea.