The Biology of Marine Turtles and their Environment in the State of Kuwait - Phase 2

مولت المؤسسة المرحلة الأولى من المشروع بهدف جمع المعلومات المرتبطة بالسلاحف البحرية المتواجدة في المياه الإقليمية من حيث الجنس، العمر، مناطق التكاثر، والسلوك الهجري والحالة الصحية لها. في هذه المرحلة سيستمر الباحث في جمع المعلومات البيولوجية والبيئية عن السلاحف من حيث الكثافة العددية (الأنواع الثلاثة)، أماكن وضع البيض، مناطق التغذية، مواسم ومناطق التزاوج، والكثافة العددية

The main aim of the project is to enhance the biodiversity of marine ecosystems in Kuwait. This is of extreme importance as Kuwait has unique climatic conditions varying from cold winters to extremely hot summers. The conservation of sea turtles and the study of their biology are of national and international interest. Sea turtles are protected under CITES convention for conservation of endangered species and under the Biodiversity Rio Declaration, of which Kuwait is an active member and has developed a Biodiversity Strategy for Kuwait. Historically, turtles were known in the Arabian Gulf from records left by the Dilmuns over 5000 years ago in Bahrain and Kuwait. In recent years, the effects of shoreline development, industrialization and the illegal Iraqi invasion and occupation of Kuwait resulted in great habitat alteration, destruction and species loss. In view of phase one of this project, which demonstrated that the sea turtles have returned to Kuwaiti waters and, secondly, due to the devastation of the invasion by the Iraqis in 1990, it is of significant importance to evaluate the various impacts on Kuwait’s marine environment. The project addresses national and international concerns on the conservation of sea turtles and their biology. There has not been much information published on the biology, life-cycle, occurrence and numbers of turtles in the northern Arabian Gulf and Kuwait in particular. The first phase of the project discovered that sea turtles had returned to Kuwait and were attempting to nest on at least two islands. The publication of the results will establish the first record of the presence of turtles in Kuwait, especially in the northern regions of the Arabian Gulf.