Citizen participation in the release of charapa turtles.
Parque Nacional Yasuní
Management of Charapa Turtles: An opportunity for the conservation of aquatic ecosystems in Yasuní National Park.
Full Solution
Newly hatched Charapa turtles.
Patricio Macas-Pogo
The turtles Podocnemis unifilis and Podocnemis expansa are commonly known as small and large charapa, respectively; they are listed by the IUCN as VU and LC. Unfortunately, due to illegal trade, pollution and fragmentation of their habitat, the conservation of these species has been threatened, making the decline of their populations notorious. The Charapas Turtle Management Project has been developed during 4 periods, in 4 control posts of the Yasuní National Park and in 1 post in its area of influence. During these periods of time several activities have been carried out to optimally manage these species, such as: construction and maintenance of artificial sandpits and pools, collection and seeding of eggs, monitoring of incubation and hatching, measurement, weighing of individuals, marking and release. In addition, actions have been articulated for the involvement of key social actors in these activities.
Last update: 01 Sep 2022
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Context
Challenges addressed
- Conservation of the populations of the two species of charapa turtles.
- Decrease illegal hunting and trade of wild fauna.
- Preserve the ecological value of these species.
- Motivate the people of the communities that live inside and outside of the protected area to conserve the aquatic ecosystems.
Location
Yasuní Orellana - Province of Orellana, 2202, Ecuador
South America
Process
Summary of the process
To date, the project has been implemented progressively in five control posts, applying the methodology developed by the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS - Ecuador) based on knowledge transfer procedures (collection, transport, construction of artificial sandboxes, follow-up, hatching care, release and monitoring). To date, 2,562 individuals of the two turtle species(Podocnemis unifilis and Podocnemis expansa) have been released in the various rivers of the protected area, involving approximately 250 people, including students, teachers, leaders, tour guides, and residents of the release zones.
These results show that the project is technically feasible, that it needs to be strengthened to improve the hatching success rate, an adequate repopulation of the two turtle species, and to reach more people with an environmental message.
Building Blocks
Training for local stakeholders
With the advice of WCS Ecuador, the project was socialized to indigenous communities and public and private institutions.
Enabling factors
- Coordinated work strategy with institutions specialized in participatory wildlife management.
- Definition of an action plan with the involvement of various sectors.
- Training of local stakeholders, preferably indigenous communities.
Lesson learned
- During the management process, there was a loss of eggs and hatchlings due to the easy access of people and dogs from the communities to the artificial sand pits and pools.
- Control has been improved in the area where this activity is being implemented, involving strategic stakeholders who received prior training.
Raising awareness about the importance of the charapas turtles
Through the project "Yasuní Our Home", aimed at children, youth and adults, we have educated about the importance of conserving these species and their natural habitat.
Enabling factors
- Design of an education and awareness program, where specific initiatives such as the management of charapas turtles can be linked.
- Preparation of activities and educational materials for children, youth and adults to raise awareness about the mismanagement of wild turtle species.
Lesson learned
- Children and youth who are adequately informed about wildlife management are actors that can influence adults to change several inadequate practices such as the unsustainable collection of charapas turtle eggs.
- The more diverse the audiences that are included in awareness-raising processes, the better responses will be achieved in the future with the populations linked to the protected area.
Participatory repopulation of charapas turtles
The turtles hatched from the eggs collected at the beginning of the management process are released after assessing their health status and being tagged for subsequent monitoring. This will allow us to know the effectiveness of the repopulation of these species.
Enabling factors
- Use of charapas turtle eggs seized in control and surveillance operations as part of the repopulation program.
- Generation of experiences for the establishment of sandboxes or turtle egg incubation/hatching sites.
- Release of hatchlings with the involvement of local populations.
Lesson learned
- In January 2019, through the control and surveillance program, 218 charapa turtle eggs were seized, of which 189 were "seeded" with the idea that they would hatch, however, no hatchlings were obtained.
- In January 2020, personnel at the Tambococha checkpoint seized 22 eggs of the large charapa turtle(Podocnemis expansa). Of these, 15 turtles were released into the Jatuncocha lagoon in April 2020 and hatched.
- The sandboxes, in addition to being used for the established management process, can be used for the seeding of eggs confiscated in wildlife trafficking operations. However, their hatching will depend on how they have been handled and the time elapsed since they were collected.
Impacts
Through the management of the two species of charapa turtles, we have tried to contribute to:
- Recovery of the charapa turtle populations.
- Re-establishment of the trophic and ecological chains in the ecosystem.
- Increase in the knowledge of the people of the communities about the ecological service provided by the charapa turtles.
- Change in the misconception of the use of natural resources.
- Decrease in illegal trafficking of charapa turtles.
- Opportunities to manage charapa turtles for tourism through a community program for the adoption of turtles by visitors.
From this perspective, this wildlife management initiative, Yasuní National Park is a benchmark of good management and successful results that are part of the indicators established in the Green List Standard.
Beneficiaries
- Tourist centers located along the Napo River.
- People from the communities inside and outside of Yasuní National Park.
Sustainable Development Goals
SDG 15 – Life on land
Story
Two successful charapa turtle conservation initiatives have been developed in the northern Ecuadorian Amazon, the first, since 1992, in the territory of the Cofán de Zábalo community within the Cuyabeno Fauna Production Reserve and the second, which corresponds to the project "Management and Conservation of Charapa Turtles in communities settled in the northwestern area of Yasuní National Park", developed by WCS-Ecuador, since 2007.
Both programs, over the years, have developed important training efforts for the inhabitants of the communities involved, as well as technical capacity building for park rangers and specialists of the two protected areas.
In 2017, the Yasuní National Park administration initiated a pilot implementation of the charapa turtle management program in the northwestern sector. The lessons learned allowed to expand in 2018, the area of intervention in the following sectors: northeast between the confluence of the Napo River with the Tiputini and Napo with the Yasuní, and in the southwestern sector, in the Shiripuno River and the Auca road.
In November 2018, park rangers from Yasuní National Park, and members of the Environmental Protection Unit of the National Police of Ecuador, retained and seized about three thousand charapa turtle eggs in an operation to control environmental crimes in the province of Orellana, eggs that allegedly came from the beaches and sandbanks of the rivers that cross the protected area.
Simultaneously, training, environmental education, and communication activities for the conservation of the charapa turtle have been developed for students, inhabitants, and local authorities in the project's intervention areas.
The program implemented in the protected area, which involves various stakeholders and management programs, is emblematic and demonstrates its capacity and preparation to comply with the indicators established in the Green List Standard and achieve its respective certification.
