Receive and release into the natural environment a sea turtle weighing 12 kg

According to the leader of Hon Cau Marine Reserve, the Lien Huong Port Border Guard Station discovered a sea turtle in the Vinh Tan Thermal Power Plant area and handed it over to Hon Cau Marine Reserve to release it into the natural environment.

Accordingly, this sea turtle belongs to the family Chelonia mydas ( scientific name: Chelonia mydas), weighs 12kg, is 50cm long, 47cm wide, and is healthy. This is an endangered, rare animal species, listed in the Red Book of Vietnam and in Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (abbreviated as CITES).

This morning, Hon Cau Marine Reserve and Lien Huong Port Border Guard Station coordinated to release this sea turtle back into the natural environment in the Hon Cau sea area. It is known that last May, a fisherman in Lien Huong commune accidentally discovered a sea turtle caught in a net while fishing and proactively released it back into the natural environment.

In recent years, the Department of Fisheries and Seas and Islands has coordinated with functional agencies and local authorities to do a good job of propaganda to fishermen in the area. Thanks to that, people's awareness has been raised, actively joining hands to protect wild and rare natural animals.

According to Ms. Luu Yen Phi, Head of the General Administration Department, the number of sea turtles coming to Hon Cau Marine Reserve to lay eggs has increased in recent years. Since the beginning of the year, Hon Cau Island has recorded 7 turtles coming to the egg-laying beach, marking a positive sign, reflecting the proliferation of this rare animal, as well as the strong recovery and development of the marine ecosystem here. In particular, the latest turtle nest hatched on August 8 after 46 days of incubation and was released into the wild by the Patrol Team in the Reserve.