World Status, Exploitation and Trade - WIDECAST

KAMPUCHEAAccording to Bourret (1941), both C. mydas and E. imbricata occurred allaround the coast of the former French colonies in Indochina, which wouldinclude the present Kampuchea, and both species, at the time of his writing,were considered to be common. Nesting appears to have been mainly limitedto the offshore islands, notably those off the west coast of Cochin China,but very little detailed information is available. References by Bourret(1941) to the west coast of Cochin China seem likely to refer in part toislands and waters now within Kampuchean territory, but largely to islands,including Quan Phu Quoc , in Vietnamese territory. The Poulo Wai group isthe only nest site specifically named in available literature (Bourret,1941); this seems likely to be the same as the Ko Way group, situated in thenorth-east Gulf of Thailand some 60 km from the coast of Kampuchea. BothC. mydas and E. imbricata appear to have nested in the group, and eggs forthe Hawksbill rearing operation near Ha Tien (Viet Nam) were taken from thissite (Le Poulain, 1941). The Hawksbill was said to be most abundant off thewest coast of the Cochin China region. Hawksbill nesting in the islands offthe west coast of Cochin China takes place in December-February (Le Poulain,1941).No information is available on recent population levels.EXPLOITATIONCommodity C. mydas was said to be actively sought for its meat inIndochina, while E. imbricata was not eaten and was considered poisonous.The eggs of both species were popular and were traded locally. There was awell established Hawksbill shell industry (Bourret, 1941).Hunting intensity No information is available on recent exploitation.Hunting methods Turtles were usually caught with nets about 200 m longand 3 m deep, having a mesh size of 40 cm. These were used to encircleshallow areas, from which the turtles would be frightened into the nets byfishermen beating the water with sticks. In deeper waters, trawling wasused, and turtles were also turned on the nesting beaches (Le Poulain, 1941).Historical trends The villages of Samit and Luc-son, in Kampuchea, weresaid to be centres for turtle fishing (Le Poulain, 1941). Bourret (1941)reported that hawksbill shell was used locally to make combs and opiumpipes. However this may have been an imported skill, as Bourret reportedthat Pavie, during his visit in 1876, taught fisherman at Kampot how toprepare Hawksbill carapaces, and that this activity later developed Into alocal industry.Domestic trade In 1941, Hawksbllls were said to be worth about 12Piastres each for their shell, while Green Turtles only sold for 8 Piastres(Le Poulain, 1941)International trade Bourret (1941) stated that shell from the CochinChina region, which, as noted above, appears likely to include islandspresently within Kampuchea, was sent to supply the tortolseshell industry inthe Tonkin region of Viet Nam (Bourret cites brushes and boxes as among theproducts of this industry).Kampuchea is not a Party to CITES, and no trade in sea turtle products hasbeen recorded In the CITES Annual Reports. The only reference to trade intortolseshell with Kampuchea in the Customs reports consulted was the Import287