World Status, Exploitation and Trade - WIDECAST

TURKS AND CAICOSISLANDSPOPULATION:Chelonia mydasNesting sites See Table 208.Nesting numbers Garland (in litt. 7 October 1986) reported nestingGreen Turtles to be moderately abundant. Fletemeyer (1984b) estimated thepopulation of nesting females to be 75 + 30 in 1982. Carr et al (1982) andBacon (1981) considered nesting to be rare.Trends in nesting numbers Garland ( in litt , 7 October 1986) consideredthe nesting population to be decreasing.Nesting season Fletemeyer (1984b) observed nesting between April andAugustForaging sites Fletemeyer (1984b) noted foraging at Big Ambergris Cay,Little Ambergris Cay, Fish Cay, Bottle Creek, Highas Cay, Grand Turk, GibbsCay, Cotton Cay, East Cay, Salt Cay, Grand Caicos, North Caicos and OceanHole. Carr et al (1982) noted that young Green Turtles were abundant inmangrove creeks along the southern shores of the Caicos Islands. Accordingto Bacon (1981), foraging by adults was occasional and by juveniles frequent.POPULATION : Eretemochelys imbricataNesting sites See Table 208.Nesting numbers Garland ( in litt . , 7 October 1986) reported nesting inmedium abundance. Fletemeyer (1984b) estimated the population of nestingfemales to be 200 + 75 in 1982. Carr et al 1982 reported no concentratednesting by any species in the Caicos Islands, but noted that Hawksbills werethe most abundant nesters. Bacon (1981) considered Hawksbill nesting to befrequentTrends in nesting numbers Garland ( in litt.the nesting population to be decreasing.7 October 1986) consideredNesting seasonApril-August.Nesting reported by Fletemeyer (1984b) occurredForaging sites Foraging was reported at Big Ambergris Cay, LittleAmbergris Cay, Fish Cay, Highas Cay, Grand Turk, Gibbs Cay, Cotton Cay, EastCay, Salt Cay, Grand Caicos and North Caicos. Bacon (1981) noted frequentforaging by both adults and juveniles.EXPLOITATIONCommodity The major commodities were meat, eggs and shell products fromboth Green Turtles and Hawksbills (Garland, in litt. . 7 October 1986).Hunting intensity Fletemeyer (1984b) reported the capture in 1982 of 800(4000 kg) Hawksbills. The weights given for these catches would indicatethat they consisted predominantly of juveniles of both species. Annualsubsistence exploitation was estimated at 8000-10 000 eggs, 20-30 nestingfemales and 200-400 turtles caught at sea. The number of people dependenton fishing for turtles was estimated as 80 ± 10 in 1982. Cockburn Town(Grand Turk), Bottle Creek (North Caicos), South Caicos, Salt Cay, Conch535