AN INJURED female hawksbill sea turtle was rescued on Tuesday evening, May 19, off the coast in Punta Dumalag, Matina Aplaya, Davao City, which is a protected turtle nesting site.
In a post on Facebook by environmentalist and D'Bone Collector Museum Director Darrell Blatchley, he said he received a call around 8:30 p.m. from Central 911 informing him of the stranded turtle.
"Sea turtles don't strand unless laying eggs. [I] rushed to the location. [It] makes me angry. Two fishing spears sticking out of the neck and 4 feet of spear," Blatchley said on his post.
Blatchley said in an interview that the locals in the area discovered the wounded turtle. When he arrived, he found the turtle strangled in a spear. To be able to transport the turtle, they had to remove one spear since it was hooked on the turtle, while the other penetrated the reptile's neck.
They had to cut off the spear, leaving three inches of metal rod inside the body of the turtle. Apart from the apparent injury, Blatchley said the turtle is alive and healthy.
"I really hope this beautiful female hawksbill survives. We endorsed the turtle to the police and the Pawikan (sea turtle) sanctuary as they have the proper Vets for this," he said.
Blatchley said that based on his observation, the spear has been in the turtle's body for several days due to the condition of the skin healing around the spears. The turtle may have been speared within Davao Gulf.
Since Punta Dumalag is a nesting round, Blatchley said the female hawksbill could have swum to the shore to lay eggs or have struggled to swim due to the spear.
He cited that Badjaos are known to hunt the sea turtles, also called Pawikan, "as there is little to no enforcement."
He said illegal activities such as this continue because of the government's lack of enforcement of the laws.
He said spearfishing, which uses a compressor, at night is still rampant.
He pointed out that some of the fresh catch in the market's fish section, like the parrotfish, are caught through spearfishing.
Meanwhile, he said they endorsed the pawikan to the Pawikan Sanctuary, which is a rescue and hatchery facility. It has a temporary shelter, clinic, laboratory, observation deck, boardwalks, and other facilities for the rescue, rehabilitation, conservation, protection, and care of sea turtles in Punta Dumalag.