Sea Turtle Recovery Action Plan for St. Kitts and Nevis - WIDECAST

St. Kitts and Nevis Sea Turtles…
School), Campbell Evelyn (former Chair, Conservation Commission; conservationist), Charles
Solas (fisherman), Kenneth Samuel and David Howlett (Kenneth's Dive Center), Oliver Spencer
(Old Road Fisherman's Cooperative), Rikki Grober (Island Resources Foundation), Ricky
Pereira (Owner, Turtle Beach Bar & Grill), Diana Honebrink (Peace Corps Volunteer,
Environmental Educator), Jacqueline Cramer-Armony (Founding President, SCHS), and Tim
Sands (Peace Corps Volunteer, Division of Fisheries) provided invaluable input, including
fishing effort, sightings and nesting data, historical perspective, and creative solutions to
contemporary stresses on sea turtles. Karen Eckert is grateful to Maria Bacci (Organization of
American States), Tim Sands, and Tom and Diana Honebrink for their friendship and hospitality
in providing housing and transportation during her repeated visits to St. Kitts.
The authors would also like to express their sincere appreciation to those people who
attended the 22 October 1992 Community Meeting in St. Kitts (hosted by the SCHS Marine
Division) to review and discuss this document. The participants included Campbell Evelyn,
Joseph Simmonds, Oliver Spencer, Tim Sands, Diana Honebrink (affiliations noted above),
Marian Dupré (Ballahoo Restaurant), Peter Dupré (SCHS Marine Division; St. Kitts Boat Club),
Delroy Joseph (Customs Supervisor, Excise Dept.), Arlene Joseph (concerned citizen), Telca
Wallace (concerned citizen), Everett Cozier (Basseterre Fisherman's Cooperative), Steve Shipe
(U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service), Lee Graham (Basseterre Fisherman's Cooperative), Michael
Embesi (Peace Corps Volunteer, Environmental Educator), Stanley Margolis (Kenneth's Dive
Center), and Clyde James (Cooperatives Officer). Randy Walters (marine biologist) and Vincent
Coker (Conservation Officer, Dept. Agriculture) reviewed the Plan but could not attend the
meeting.
A special vote of thanks goes to the Estridge Primary School and to Ms. Susanna Lee
(Head Teacher), who cared so much and worked so hard to learn about endangered sea turtles
and to draft a Sea Turtle Recovery Action Plan of their own (see Introduction). We also thank
the students of Cayon, Molineux, and Estridge primary schools who conducted interviews and
wrote essays on the sea turtles of St. Kitts (see Appendix I). On a more personal note, TDH
expresses gratitude to his wife Diana for her support and understanding during the long hours of
preparation required to complete this Plan. Finally, the authors speak for all persons who
selflessly gave of their time and expertise to this document in dedicating it to the sea turtles of St.
Kitts/Nevis . . . and to the children who will inherit the results of the decisions we make today.
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1/ The WIDECAST regional Recovery Team provided impetus for this document and critiqued
earlier drafts. These persons are the following: Lic. Ana Cecilia Chaves (Costa Rica), Dr. Karen
Eckert (USA), Jacques Fretey (France), John Fuller (Antigua), Molly Gaskin (Trinidad), Dr.
Julia Horrocks (Barbados), Maria Teresa Koberg (Costa Rica), Dr. Peter Pritchard (USA), Dr.
James Richardson (USA), and Dr. Georgita Ruiz (Mexico). The IUCN/SSC Marine Turtle
Specialist Group (Dr. Karen Bjorndal, Chair) also provided useful comments on an earlier draft.
Major financial support for WIDECAST has come from Monitor International, The Chelonia
Institute, the UNEP Caribbean Environment Programme, and the U. S. National Marine Fisheries
Service. Special appreciation is due Milton Kaufmann (President of Monitor International and
Founder of WIDECAST) and Robert Truland (Trustee, The Chelonia Institute) for their
unwavering personal commitment to WIDECAST since its inception more than a decade ago.
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