Farm breeds Sea Turtles for meat trade & conservation – What do you think of this?

Hi All,

An accident that caused the deaths of 299 endangered Green Turtles at the Cayman Turtle Farm has raised concerns about the facility’s operation. The incident brought other issues to my mind as well. I was first inspired by the legendary herpetologist Archie Carr, and have since been involved in several field studies of Green, Leatherback and other marine turtles (please see article below). I see the value in organizations such as Cayman Turtle Farm, which raises turtles for the food market while also racking up important “firsts” in breeding and research. However, many disagree with me. Can conservation and the meat trade co-exist? What’s your opinion? Any comments you may wish to post below would be much appreciated. Read article here: http://bitly.com/PEmdhI

Comments and questions appreciated. As I do not place notices here each time I post a new article on That Reptile Blog, you may wish to check in periodically or subscribe; you can do so here http://bitly.com/JJNk9h. Please also check out my posts on Twitter http://bitly.com/JP27Nj.

Thanks, Frank
My Bio, with photos of animals I’ve been lucky enough to work with http://bitly.com/LC8Lbp
Face Book http://on.fb.me/KckP1m

Conservation and meat can exist together but will ultimately be clashing when it comes to ethics and outcome. Look at the alligator farms in florida, when alligator populations were on the decline, farms were built for the conservation effort and meat trade. Today, populations are on the rise and the meat trade is expanding because of these farms. As far as the meat trade goes for sea turtles, i see it as making people think it's still okay to hunt them for food in the wild if we are producing them on farms, kind of like that "kill one replace one" mentality, that right now cannot be allowed. Most sea turtle species are still endangered or on the decline. One day if theyre wild poplulations are on the rise then maybe everybody would be okay with it, but for now no.

Originally Posted by hadenglock

Conservation and meat can exist together but will ultimately be clashing when it comes to ethics and outcome. Look at the alligator farms in florida, when alligator populations were on the decline, farms were built for the conservation effort and meat trade. Today, populations are on the rise and the meat trade is expanding because of these farms. As far as the meat trade goes for sea turtles, i see it as making people think it's still okay to hunt them for food in the wild if we are producing them on farms, kind of like that "kill one replace one" mentality, that right now cannot be allowed. Most sea turtle species are still endangered or on the decline. One day if theyre wild poplulations are on the rise then maybe everybody would be okay with it, but for now no.

Hi,

Thanks and sorry for the delay..comment notice was sent to SPAM for some reason. If enforcement is effective, i.e. as in US, re illegal alligator hunting, the controlled commercial breeding does take pressure from wild populations, as you mention. In some cases, even legally harvested products must be outlawed, as it may be difficult to distinguish legal from non-legal products or species. This was the case years in some investigations I was involved in with co-workers years ago re tanned crocodilian hides, and I believe is still true for the ivory trade (croc species can now be ID'd via genetics in need be). Unfortuntely, ethics sometimes complicates conservation, with well-meaning people confusing individual with species protection. Situation for many is so desperate that we must focus on what is effective, esp. given enforcement/funding difficulties, Best, Frank