133 Sea Turtle Hatchlings Released Off Rosario Island

133 Sea Turtle Hatchlings Released Off Rosario Island

ROSARIO, Cavite — Local officials released 133 sea turtle hatchlings along the shores of Isla Bonita, Rosario, Cavite, continuing conservation efforts at a nesting site that has been protected since 2007.

The Municipal Environment and Natural Resources Office led the release, coordinated with Bantay-Dagat (Sea Patrol) volunteers stationed on the island.

Rosario Mayor Voltaire Ricafrente and Vice Mayor Bamm Gonzales urged residents to help maintain cleanliness along the coastline and avoid activities that could harm the natural environment.

Ongoing beach cleanup operations, officials said, are aimed at sustaining nesting conditions for the protected species.

Sea turtles are critically important to marine ecosystems in the Philippines, which lies within the Coral Triangle — one of the most biodiverse marine regions on Earth.

The country is home to five of the world’s seven sea turtle species, including the hawksbill, green, leatherback, olive ridley and loggerhead. All are listed as threatened or endangered under Philippine law through Republic Act 9147, the Wildlife Resources Conservation and Protection Act, which prohibits the capture, trade or killing of sea turtles.

Locally known as pawikan, sea turtles face threats from illegal poaching, coastal development, marine pollution and bycatch. Conservation groups and local government units across the archipelago have established protected nesting beaches to help reverse population declines.

Isla Bonita has served as an active nesting ground for over 15 years, making it one of the longer-running community-based pawikan protection sites in Cavite.