The Call of the Sea: When a turtle is repeatedly rescued twice

Original title: Exclusive planning | the call of the sea: when a turtle is repeatedly rescued twice

The oceans, which cover 71% of the earth's area, are closely related to our human destiny. Its species resources are abundant, millions of years, the ocean has brought abundant food, resources and energy to human beings, which maintains the survival and development of human beings; The oceans play a vital role as a position to participate in the global carbon cycle. The rapid development of industry in the 21st century, under the vision of the "community of ocean destiny", global warming, microplastic pollution, ocean acidification, ocean vulcanization, ocean hypoxia, marine heat waves, among which marine biological chain faults, coral bleaching, seagrass degradation, marine flagship species are endangered... These are happening. Is the ocean, as the cradle of life, really inexhaustible? How much self-healing ability is left in today's oceans?

"Corals are difficult to survive without small fish, and then there are big fish, and as for humans, you can think of them as the biggest big fish." Some of the words in the documentary "Chasing Corals" are thought-provoking. The butterfly effect, the flapping of wings by a butterfly in the Amazon rainforest, will cause a hurricane, which seems to be a thousand miles apart, but it is layered and mutually causal. Like the relationship between man and the ocean, "if you fish with all your might, won't you get it?" And next year there will be no fish", in today's increasingly severe international marine ecological environment, nature has sounded the alarm bell for human beings...

Global warming

Will turtles disappear in the future?

"The greenhouse effect is gradually affecting the survival of sea turtles." Lin Liu, an associate professor at the School of Life Sciences of Hainan Normal University, has been engaged in turtle and turtle research and has been working on turtle conservation in the South China Sea in recent years, and as one of the members of Professor Shi Haitao's academic research team, he talked about global warming, "Rising temperatures have little impact on turtles on the surface, but they directly affect the sex of their offspring." Because the sex of baby turtles is determined by the ambient temperature during the hatching of turtle eggs. ”

According to Lin Liu, if the environmental temperature of turtle eggs is higher during incubation, more female turtles will hatch, and vice versa, more male turtles will hatch. Is it possible to balance the male and female populations of this species of sea turtle by artificial hatching? As a turtle and turtle research and scientific research worker, Lin Liu said that at present, it is not recommended to intervene in the hatching of sea turtles, because turtle eggs are laid by turtles and buried in the sand pit, artificial hatching must first plane the turtle eggs from the beach, and artificial egg retrieval is very likely to affect the embryonic development of turtle eggs, and eventually lead to turtle hatching failure.

In addition, sea turtles, which have survived on Earth for hundreds of millions of years, appear to have responded to global warming. Lin Liu said of a phenomenon, "As the flagship species of the ocean, the sea turtle has lived on the earth for hundreds of millions of years, and its natural adaptability is extremely strong. To adapt to global warming, turtles in some areas will advance the month of spawning, while others may change their spawning sites, such as moving to higher latitudes, to ensure that the temperature during hatching is appropriate. ”

What is an umbrella species?

Sea turtles maintain the balance of marine ecology

Yes, turtles can also eat sponges

Sea turtles are "umbrella species" in marine ecosystems, and their living environment needs can cover the survival needs of other species, so sea turtles are like umbrellas, protecting them while also providing protection for other species. For example, coral reefs are an important habitat for sea turtles, and protecting sea turtles requires protecting coral reefs, which also invisibly protects the small fish and shrimp in coral reefs.

How do turtles protect the ecological balance of coral reefs? Associate Professor Lin Liu cited tortoiseshell as an example: "A large part of the food of tortoiseshell is to eat sponges. The main ingredient of sponges is silica, and most organisms in the ocean are inedible to sponges, which are toxic and compete with corals for survival. If there is no tortoiseshell in the ocean, sponges will grow wildly, thus encroaching on the space where corals live, corals will naturally decrease, and the importance of coral reefs in marine ecosystems is self-evident. If the hawksbill turtle goes extinct, corals will also face crisis; If corals go extinct, the islands and reefs will be gone, and human beings are also in danger. ”

Sea turtles also balance the number of jellyfish, stabilizing the health of the marine ecosystem.

Jellyfish are light, graceful, and reproduce quickly, but the beauty of jellyfish is also more toxic. Once jellyfish erupt in the ocean, it has a great impact on human life and directly endangers fishery resources. The leatherback turtle, as the largest sea turtle in the ocean, is like a small van when it is an adult, weighs nearly one ton, and can eat hundreds of kilograms of jellyfish every day when it becomes an adult, which is the "jellyfish harvester" in the ocean.

Today, leatherback turtles are endangered and extinct around the world. Leatherback turtles are not often found in the South China Sea. According to Lin Liu, a few years ago in Ledong, Hainan, fishermen mistakenly caught a juvenile leatherback turtle, and the fishermen immediately released the leatherback turtle back to the sea. From fishing for turtles to actively releasing them, fishermen's awareness of turtle protection is constantly strengthening and improving, which is the guiding result of the publicity and law enforcement work of functional departments and the many years of sea turtle protection organizations.

Turtle "Snow White"

Rescued twice in a row

When it comes to turtle rescue in Hainan, we have to mention the turtle rescue station of Hainan Normal University, which is the place where Associate Professor Lin Liu often goes, and he who has been involved in the rescue of sea turtles for many years mentioned to reporters that he and his team had an unforgettable experience in the process of rescuing sea turtles, and repeatedly rescued the same turtle.

"In Sanya, a turtle unfortunately bit the angler's hook, and the hook pierced its esophagus directly. Dying, he was sent to Haikou and underwent rescue surgery in cooperation with Hainan Normal University and Hainan Provincial Animal Hospital. Lin Liu recalled that it was the first case of turtle endoscopic surgery in Hainan Province, the operation was very successful, because the rescued turtle body was vilified, and the students of the turtle rescue station in the university gave it a unique name, called "White Snow".

After 2 years of rehabilitation training at the Turtle Rescue Station of Hainan Normal University, the turtle "White Snow" was taken to Wenchang for release, but the "White Snow" that could return to the sea was only in the ocean for half a month, and was caught by fishermen.

"At that time, the fishermen who captured it prepared 1500 pieces to sell it, fortunately, there was a physiological salt discharge phenomenon in the corner of the eye of the 'White Snow' at that time, which was mistaken by the local fishermen as crying, and it was easy to bear it, and then saw a metal label on the 'White Snow' body, which said the telephone of Shi Haitao, vice president of Hainan Normal University, and the fishermen dialed it, and the 'White Snow' was saved." Before sending away the 'white snow', the fishermen also happily hung red cloth on its back and limbs. Lin Liu talked about the turtle "Snow Snow" has been rescued by the rescue station twice, and the probability of such an event is very low, which is incredible.

"Bai Xue" was rescued for the second time and then recuperated in the rescue station for 7-8 months, during which a large number of plastic fragments were excreted, Lin Liu analyzed that it was caused by intestinal obstruction due to accidentally eating plastic bags in the ocean, "until later it was no longer excreted plastic, intestinal function returned to normal, and we released it back to the sea in Wenchang." Talking about the blessing of "white snow", Lin Liu said, "I hope I will never see them again." ”

At present, there are still more than ten turtles receiving rescue and treatment at the Hainan Normal University Sea Turtle Rescue Station. It is understood that this year, the turtle rescue station will carry out turtle rewilding training, and if the results of rewilding training are better, they will choose a suitable time to send them back to the sea.

There are only 2 families, 6 genera and 7 species of turtles in existence worldwide

Both are listed as endangered species of wild fauna and flora

The sea turtle is an ancient and magical large marine reptile. As a species that lived in the same era as dinosaurs and survived to this day, sea turtles have an irreplaceable position in the history of biological evolution, and are known as marine "living fossils". There are only 2 families and 6 genera and 7 species of sea turtles in the world, namely leatherback turtle, red sea turtle (cockroach turtle), hawksbill turtle, green sea turtle, Pacific sea turtle, Atlantic sea turtle and flatback turtle. They are mainly found in the waters of the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian Oceans. Global turtle populations, including China, have plummeted due to chronic overfishing, illegal trade, overexploitation, human factors such as marine pollution and global warming, and threats of climate change. Currently, all sea turtles are listed in Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), Appendix II of the Convention for the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Fauna (CMS) and the IUCN Red List; Five species of sea turtles distributed in China, including leatherback turtles, red sea turtles (loggerhead turtles), hawksbill turtles, green sea turtles, and Pacific sea turtles, are listed as national key protected wild animals.

Based on recent research data, Associate Professor Lin Liu said: "There is a trend of increasing nesting of sea turtles in some nesting areas around the world, which may be related to the effective protection of turtle eggs and nesting females in these areas and the reduction of by-catch. However, the nesting of leatherback turtles in the eastern and western Pacific oceans is decreasing, proving that conservation should continue. Most conservation efforts are currently focused on reducing illegal fishing, captivity or disruption to ovary laying in order to maximize the protection and restoration of sea turtle populations. ”

[Source: New Hainan Client Editor: Fu Yi]