Map showing and Nicobar Dr. A. Murugan Suganthi Devadason Marine Research Institute 44-Beach Road, Tuticorin-628 001, India Tel.: +91 461 2336488; Fax: +91 461 2325692 & Nicobar Location: 6 45 N to 13 41 N (740 km) and 92 12 E to 93 57 E (190 km) Total area: 8249 Sq. Km. East - Separated by Sea from South East Asian Coast West - Bay of Bengal from the Indian Peninsula South - Malacca Strait in the south from Sumatra (145 Kms southeast) North - Myanmar coast (280 Kms) 306 in and Nicobar Inhabited 24 Wildlife sanctuary 94 (include 2 marine national parks) (include 30 islands that were confirmed sea turtle nesting sites) Tribal reserves 4 (entire Nicobar group is tribal reserve) Group of North Middle South (include Ritchies Archipelago) Little Nicobar More than 23 islands (12 inhabited) covering 1841 Sq. Km. Car Nicobar Nancowrie group of islands Great Nicobar group of islands
Turtles occurring along Indian coast 5 of the 7 species occur along the Indian Coast Olive Ridley Lepidochelys olivacea Green Turtle Chelonia mydas Hawksbill Eretmochelys imbricata Leatherback Dermochelys coriacea Loggerhead Caretta caretta & Nicobar STATE / PROVINCE and Nicobar SPECIES REPORTED Olive Ridley, Green turtle, Leatherback Hawksbill, Loggerhead SPECIES CONFIRMED FOR NESTING Olive Ridley, Green turtle, Hawksbill and Loggerhead KNOWN NESTING BEACHES Great Nicobar, Little, Rutland, Middle, Katchal, South Sentinel, South reef & Teris Seagrass Meadows Discontinuously distributed along the coast of & Nicobar. 9 species out of 14 were recorded from & Nicobar Most common - Thalassia hemprichii group South 8 species (more species richness) Little 6 species Nicobar group Camorta east 9 species Pilomilow South 7 species Frequently encountered turtles in sea grass meadows Green Turtle Chelonia mydas Olive Ridely Lepidochelys olivacea Hawksbill Eretmochelys imbricata Coral reefs s-stretched over an area of 11,000 sq km Nicobar - 2,700 sq km under coral reefs & Nicobar have fringing reefs around east coast and a long barrier reef (320 km) on the west.
Turtles of and Nicobar islands 4 species of sea turtles - Leatherback Dermochelys coriacea - Hawksbill Eretmochelys imbricata - Green turtle Chelonia mydas - Olive Ridley Lepidochelys olivacea In 1978 94 islands in the s notified as sanctuaries includes 30 islands as confirmed sea turtle nesting sites 24 sites reported in Nicobar group of islands Leatherback 23 sites reported in and Nicobar islands Hawksbill - 27 in group (26 islands) - 12 sites in Nicobar group - 3 in Little - Most important hawksbill nesting sites - South reef Island in Middle - North Brother and Snark in the South - Peak nesting season September to October Threats Most commonly hunted turtle for meat and eggs - incidental catch Green Most common species - Nests year around main nesting from June November with peak in July - 37 nesting sites in s including Little - 12 sites in Nicobar group - 3 nesting sites on the east coast of Baratang Island in Horsford, Rawlen s and Grieve Bays - North of Outram Island, Long and North Passage. - West coast Petri and Bluff - Robert Bay in Middle - South Sentinel Island important nesting ground - Threats Poaching for meat and eggs Olive Ridley nests during October-April with peak from January- February nests only on east coast of 12 sites & Nicobar group 3 sites Main sites Madhuban in South - Cuthbert Bay (major site) and Karamatang in Middle - Ramnagar and Coffeedera beaches in North - Smith, Trlby and Hump - 3 beaches on the West coast of Little Nicobar Great Nicobar major location 4 nesting beaches - Teressa Island Leatherback turtle is unique as their nesting population in Nicobar is one among the four important colonies in Indo-Pacific region with more than 1000 individuals. Hawksbill turtles - considered the important population in the northern Indian Ocean area and are the largest in India. Hawksbill feeding grounds - reported all around and Nicobar - most commonly hunted turtles in these islands. Land area of 6408 km² in s constitutes - 69% as reserves and protected areas - of which 36% is tribal reserves Entire Nicobar group is a tribal reserve and has four wildlife sanctuaries, three of which are islands.
Turtles formed an important food source for the original inhabitants of & Nicobar Sea turtles - once abundant Original inhabitants of the islands - carried out subsistence hunting - offshore or by capturing nesting turtles on beaches They also collected turtle eggs - a valuable protein source - - all the species except the leatherback was hunted for meat. - Nicobar - cooked turtle meat is consumed regularly but sometimes taken raw when it is minced and mixed with coconut. - The green turtle and hawksbill are the species usually eaten. - The green turtle meat was sold at Rs. 3 to 5 per kg as late as seventies in Port Blair markets. Threats Poaching - feral dogs and by humans Sand mining Incidental catch Habitat degradation Problems Remoteness and inaccessibility of most of the turtle nesting islands Adequate staffing, infrastructure and equipment lacking Original inhabitants of the and Nicobar, are still exempted from the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act. Wildlife Protection Act 1972 All 5 species are legally protected under Schedule I of the Indian Wildlife Protection Act (1972) and listed in Appendix I of Convention of International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of wild flora and fauna (CITES) Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 The Coastal Regulation Zone Notification 1991 (Notification No.S.0.114(E) of 19 February 1991) The Fisheries Act of A&N
Great ese Jarawa Onge Sentineli