WILLEMSTAD - Members of the crew of the HMS Dauntless, a ship from the British Royal Navy, assisted in cleaning up the area of Boca Ascension and participated in research on the sea turtle population in Curaçao.
The English naval vessel arrived in Curaçao last Sunday. According to crew members, ecology is an important topic for them. As a result, a part of the crew helped clean up the bay, locally known as Plastic Bay.
Plastic pollution causes significant harm to turtles, as does sargassum seaweed. This year, a major project was initiated to study the turtles in Curaçao, many of which are affected by strange tumors.
Research
It is known that Sea Turtle Conservation Curacao, in collaboration with Manuela Tripepi, a biology professor at Jefferson University Philadelphia, has launched an in-depth investigation into the outbreak of fibropapillomatosis (FP), a disease that affects green sea turtles and poses a significant threat to the survival of this species.
Research in places like Caracasbaai bay and the northern coast of Curaçao has already shown that 80% of the studied turtles have tumors. Similarly, in Boca Ascension, a large percentage of turtles are affected by the disease, with an estimated rate of 80%.
Photo credit: Extra