Leatherback

This photo was taken at the beginning of October in Ras al Jinz, Oman.  Oman is one of the few countries in the world where every species of turtle visit.  Hundreds of Leatherbacks visit this beach and ones nearby.  Social and Economic development within Oman, particularly in terms of tourism and roads enables easy access to these beaches. One is a major site for beach camping and night time beach driving.  The beach is barely adequate to support and protect the turtles laying there.  Ras Al Jinz now has a visitor/ecological centre and there is controlled access to the beach.  However the skills and resources of the beach rangers are in no way adequate to manage the people that come in the 100 cars in the evening and the morning. On our visit to the beach we helped the rangers free the turtles from people touching them, throwing sand at them, getting in the pits with them and lying in front of them as the turtles attempted to return to the sea.  The tourists visiting were largely of one nation and evidently culturalised into thinking of animals as playthings.  We appreciate that the rangers cannot reeducate a tourist in one visit.  However a viewing area construction could be built where tourists can see the turtles but stand over, rather than on the sand.