WWF-Pakistan for conserving migratory turtle species

Business Recorder

24-05-2025

KARACHI: Despite their global recognition, marine turtles continue to be overlooked in marine policy and planning, often missing out on the attention, funding, and protection they urgently need, the WWF-Pakistan said on Friday.
The most successful conservation efforts come not from imposed top-down strategies, but from building on grassroots initiatives that are already making a difference on the ground.
WWF-Pakistan highlighted the issue on World Turtle Day, which is observed on 23 May. The organization also called for coordinated efforts and actions across the political and geographic borders to conserve the migratory turtle species.
The organization urged that many conservation programs continue to prioritize nesting beaches, often neglecting foraging areas, migratory corridors, and offshore hotspots, even though these are often the sites of greatest threat. WWF-Pakistan also urged the transnational coordination and integration of local and indigenous knowledge into governance systems to protect marine turtles.
According to WWF-Pakistan, the migratory nature of the marine turtle makes them inherently a shared species, not in ownership, but in responsibility. What happens to a turtle in one country's waters (e.g., by catch, habitat loss, pollution, climate change) affects the population across the region. In Pakistan, turtles are facing several threats, including habitat degradation, anthropogenic and shoreline development activities, which hinder the nesting activities of turtles.
The feral dogs, in particular, are known to dig turtle nests and destroy eggs; which is also considered one of the serious threats to nesting areas along the coastline of Pakistan. Increasing pollution, especially the release of solid and single-use plastic waste and ghost nets, also adversely affects the sea turtle population, both for juvenile and adult turtles. The impact of climate change on the nesting habitat is poorly studied, along with inadequate hatchery management and rehabilitation facilities for the turtles.
Muhammad Moazzam Khan, Technical Advisor, WWF-Pakistan, said that entanglement in the fishing nets is the most serious threat to the marine turtles in coastal and offshore waters. To address this issue, WWF-Pakistan initiated an awareness programme in 2012 and trained over 100 fishers to safely release the entangled turtles in gillnets. This has resulted in the safe release of thousands of turtles and other threatened marine animals in the past thirteen years. He also emphasized that all stakeholders should join hands to conserve marine turtles in Pakistan.
Shoaib Abdul Razzaque, Coordinator Marine Conservation, WWF-Pakistan, said that marine turtles do not fit neatly into the conservation boxes we often work with. They cross international boundaries, rely on different habitats at different life stages, and face threats that vary across geography and time. He also said that nesting, juvenile development, feeding, and migration happen in different places, and often in different countries' waters. Yet, much of our conservation planning still treats these turtles as if they only exist where they nest. 'The survival of marine turtles depends on how well we work together across borders, institutions, and sectors', Razzaque added.
Marine turtles are flagship and priority species that inhabit our coastal and offshore waters. Five species of marine turtles are found across major parts of the world's oceans, and all five have been recorded in Pakistan's coastal and offshore waters. The green sea turtle is the most reported marine turtle and is known to nest on key sandy beaches along the coastline of Pakistan.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025