Ghana Olive Ridley Project

A project of SEATURTLE.ORG/FL Gulf Coast Univ in conjunction with the partners and sponsors detailed below.

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Introduction

Historical records indicate that green, olive ridley, hawksbill, and loggerhead sea turtles once utilized Ghana’s coastal waters as foraging grounds. Records also indicate leatherback, green, olive ridley, hawksbill, and loggerhead also utilized Ghana’s shore as nesting habitat. There has not been a confirmed loggerhead or hawksbill nest in Ghana for 25 years indicating these two species have most likely been extirpated from the region. Currently, the leatherback, olive ridley, and green sea turtles are the only remaining species nesting in Ghana. Sea turtles in this region are exposed to a maze of fishing vessels and nets that must be carefully avoided to reach the nesting beach. Each year large sea turtle stranding events are documented during time periods of off-shore and near-shore fishing. Illegal commercial fishing activity occurs regularly in shallow off-shore waters, whereas commercial and subsidence fishing take place near-shore and off the beach. Understanding the temporal and spatial movement patterns of olive ridleys would provide information on the interaction of sea turtles and fisheries in Ghana's waters.

With funding from the Disney Worldwide Conservation Fund, we are gathering knowledge and creating educational programs necessary to implementing a conservation program that is socially and economically self-sustaining over the long term. The proposed research will answer key questions about the ecology of olive ridley sea turtles that will allow limited existing resources to be used most effectively into the future, and will incorporate educational programs to reverse the social perception of sea turtles so that their preservation is part of the cultural norm.

Project Partners

This project is a partnership between SEATURTLE.ORG, Florida Gulf Coast University, the Hlamhi Association for Turtle Conservation and Hope (HATCH), the University of Ghana and the Ghana Wildlife Division, Forestry Commission.

Project Sponsors

This project is sponsored in part by the Disney Worldwide Conservations Fund, SEATURTLE.ORG and the Hlamhi Association for Turtle Conservation and Hope (HATCH).

• The presentation of data here does not constitute publication. All data remain copyright of the project partners. Maps or data on this website may not be used or referenced without explicit written consent.
• For more information please visit the project website.
• If you have questions or would like to request the use of maps or data for this project please contact tracking@seaturtle.org.

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