 |
| Sea turtle in the Albanian coast, source: VOA |
Sea turtles and Mediterranean seals have been increasingly appearing on the Albanian coasts as a result of climate change, but their survival is threatened by various human activities.
The loggerhead sea turtle is among the rare species that frequent the shores of Albania. It is a fortunate case when the turtle emerges alive from the fishermen's nets. In most cases, they become entangled in the nets for a long time without being able to surface for breathing.
Fishermen's nets pose the main risk to endangered species.
Sea turtles have been living for about 110 million years and are known as contemporaries of dinosaurs. They are protected by the Endangered Species Act of 1973.
Rare species on the Albanian coasts are threatened by pollution and fishermen.
As a result of climate change, the endangered population of sea turtles has also appeared in the Adriatic Sea for reproduction. The researcher Enerit Saçdanaku, a scientific researcher for flora and fauna, passionately follows their presence on the Albanian coasts.
"Out of the 7 species of sea turtles in the world, Albania has three species. The first is the loggerhead turtle, or as it is called, Caretta Caretta, the second is the green or flying turtle, Chelonia mydas, and the leatherback turtle, which is the largest turtle in the world and is called Dermochelys coriacea," says Saçdanaku.
The presence of sea turtles is also monitored by the administration of protected areas.
"We have been monitoring them for several years. In recent years that we have been monitoring, 80% of the observed turtles are loggerhead turtles, and 20% are green turtles," says Nexhip Hysolakaj, a specialist in protected areas.
Sea turtles are exposed to several risks mainly due to human activity, such as pollution from wastewater, plastic waste, or coastal interventions.
"At the first aid center, we had 12 to 15 sick or stranded turtles in a year. After studying the cases, we noticed that the problems arose due to shell cracks, ingestion of plastic, or unknown causes from us," explains Hysolakaj. "30-40% end up stranded on the beach, while the other cases have minor injuries. We keep them for 3-4 days, heal them, and release them into the sea," he added.
The Mediterranean seal is another rare species that has appeared in Albania as a result of climate change. The Mediterranean seal populates the area of Karaburun and Sazan, and experts consider it globally endangered.
"For several years, we have been monitoring this species with surveillance cameras. The monitoring started with the inventory of caves found in Karaburun, which are suitable habitats for these species. So far, we have two individuals that have populated the Karaburun-Sazan park, and we are taking measures to make the park a destination that is increasingly visited by this species," said researcher Laureta Sadikllari to BIRN.