26/04/2005 – Facing rough
sea conditions for more than three hours,
a WWF outrigger canoe team competed in a paddling
race to raise awareness for sea turtle conservation.
Racing under the slogan "Paddling for
Survival", the Sea Turtle team – consisting
of six paddlers from Costa Rica – took second
place (arriving only two minutes behind the
winner) in the grueling 20.5-mile Fort Desoto–Egmont
Channel Race in the US state of Florida.
“This team’s effort shows the commitment
and concern that Costa Ricans have for sea
turtles conservation,” said Carlos Drews,
WWF’s Marine Turtle Coordinator for Latin
America and the Caribbean.
“With hard work and training they are helping
to send an important message to the world,
that only with international cooperation,
we will be able to save this prehistoric reptile
from extinction.”
The race simulated part of a migratory route
used by leatherback turtles (Dermochelys coriacea),
which paddle thousands of kilometers to reach
Costa Rican beaches for nesting. From there,
they travel north along the US coast, sometimes
reaching Canadian waters for feeding, with
many crossing the Atlantic Ocean to the coasts
of Europe and Africa before returning to the
Caribbean two and a half years later.
According to WWF, leatherbacks are in critical
danger of extinction. Their population has
declined by 90 per cent in the Pacific over
the past 20 years, with some 50,000 caught
world-wide each year in long-line fishing
nets.
“We need to tell the world about their plight,”
said Neil Kahn, trainer and captain of the
outrigger team. “Sea turtles are a shared
natural asset. We all must share in the responsibility
of saving them."
NOTES:
• Members of the paddling team – sponsored
by WWF and Sustainable Forestry Managment
(SFM) – included Gustavo Corrales, José
Segura, Alexis Sandí, Edwin Monge,
William Rivera, and Neil Kahn. The team finished
the 20.5-mile race in 3hrs and 23 minutes.
