They’ve been flirting with me the heroes in the half shell but here’s a tail (sorry) of turtles within touching distance from my old Maldives stomping ground.
And perhaps with a little work off my homestead in North Berwick, Scotland, I could get on a very important expedition.
What the doctor ordered.
Dr Stephanie Kohnk is the lead scientist for the Olive Ridley Project and author of the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Maldives National Red List Assessment on the Hawksbill Sea Turtle,
And she is heading up a pioneering genetic research expedition to study the local Maldivian hawksbill sea turtle population.
Shadow snorkelling
Guests at Patina Maldives, Fari Islands, can shadow the Doc on a unique snorkelling expedition.
They will be given a morning guided tour of the research vessel.
And they will reveal the painstaking planning and specialist equipment involved in frontline marine biological research.
Guests will get in on the first stage of the expedition on a turtle snorkelling trip led by Dr Köhnk.
Adopt a turtle
And to further support this pioneering research and conservation initiative they can adopt turtles included in the study.
Adoptees will be able to name their turtle.
And they will receive future re-sighting alerts.
And enjoy priority access to updates and insights from the project.
As part of the joint venture ‘Oceans First’ ethos from 1 June, a sea turtle biologist will be stationed on-island at Patina Maldives.
They will act as a guest educator; overseeing rescue efforts for any sea turtles that become entangled in so-called ghost gear in the area.
And they will support ongoing photo identification and population monitoring in North Male Atoll.
It is only home to the second largest turtle database in the country.
I ain’t afraid of no ghosts
The Patina Maldives team, along with its Fari Islands neighbours, also contributes to the ongoing removal of ghost gear from the ocean.
And that provides Olive Ridley Project with valuable data.
That can be used to trace the origins of discarded or abandoned fishing equipment.
And also help tackle the problem at source.
Because we all need our heroes in a half shell under the sea, our turtles within touching distance.