World Status, Exploitation and Trade - WIDECAST

GHANALittle recent information is available; Brongersma (1982) reported that bothC. mydas and E. imbricata have been recorded to nest, but gave no details ofsites or numbers. According to Parsons (1962), the coast of Ghana is one oftwo areas on the western seaboard of Africa that are most frequented byturtles (the second being the Banc d'Arguin In Mauritania). Cansdale (1955)stated that C. mydas is the most common turtle species along the coast ofGhana (and probably in West Africa generally). A survey of the wholecoastline carried out on foot from July to October in 1974 found evidence ofnesting at only one site, near the town of Anyaman, where three nests wereobserved. It is not known what species was Involved, but a dead C . mydaswas found on the beach nearby. Local inhabitants indicated that mostnesting occurred in the Accra-Anyamam area. They reported that nestingoccurred from July to December, with a peak, in November-December (Toth andToth, 1974).EXPLOITATIONCommodity Both turtle meat and eggs of C. mydas are eaten by theinhabitants of Ghana; Irvine (1947, cited in Loverldge and Williams, 1958)described how both commodities were customarily cooked in the Gold Coast.Toth and Toth (1974) reported finding the shells of 33 C. mydas . sixC. caretta and two D. corlacea during their survey of the coastline. Theysaid that both eggs and adults are regularly taken and that what is noteaten locally is taken to the markets, chiefly Prampram and Accra, forsale. They felt that there would be strong opposition to any attempts bythe Department of Game and Wildlife to enforce the protective legislation,and said that local traditions of protecting some female turtles and theirnests had existed but were now dying out.International trade Ghana acceded to CITES on 14 November 1977. Thereis no record of trade in turtle products with Ghana recorded in CITES AnnualReports.LEGISLATIONThe Wild Animals Preservation Act, 22 March 1961.The following species have total protection;E. imbricataD. corlaceaThe Act empowers the President to amend the lists and empowers theMinister to authorise the taking of protected species for scientificpurposes. It also provides for the requirement of an export permit forthe export of trophies. The import of trophies, exported fromterritories to which the Convention of the Protection of Fauna and Floraof 1933 applies, is prohibited except on production of a certificate oflawful export. (Trophies are defined as any animal mentioned in theSchedules to the Act, dead or alive, or any readily recognisable part orproduct thereof.)201