India's Orissa state sees turtle explosion

BHUBANESHWAR, India -- Thousands of baby Olive Ridley turtles have begun to make their journey from India's eastern coast to the sea, boosting hopes that the reptiles will be pulled back from the brink of extinction.

Officials estimate that about 200,000 baby turtles crawled out of eggs laid on the sandy shores of Orissa, one of the world's largest nesting grounds, and took their first tentative steps towards the sea.

"We're naturally delighted. Government efforts to guarantee the turtles' safe passage to the Orissa coast have paid off," said Ardhendu Sarangi, the state forest and environment secretary.

Every year as winter rolls around, the endangered Olive Ridleys move in large groups to three major nesting sites along the Orissa coast before returning to the sea.

Over a million turtles made their ritual trek to the nesting sites to dig sand pits and lay eggs last month.

Last year, around 700,000 turtles came ashore. There was no mass nesting in 1997 and 1998 as the turtles skipped the annual ritual.

Wildlife experts warn, however, the rejoicing could be premature because hatchlings suffered from high mortality rates.

According to studies, only one out of every 1,000 hatchlings normally reaches adulthood.

The turtles may be protected under India's Wildlife Protection act, but conservationists say as many as 50,000 turtles have died in the hands of humans, either directly or indirectly over the past five years.

The reptiles are mangled by fishing trawler propellers, or suffocated in fishermen's gill nets. They are also killed by pollution, and by poachers, who hunt them for their meat

Reuters contributed to this report.

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