LIFESTYLE&LEISURE
HELLO, Little FELLOWS! OUR CONTRIBUTOR GINO ANDRIAS PAYS A VISIT TO KUTA BEACH SEA TURTLE CONSERVATION…
B
ali, the tropical island
jellyfish, crabs and snails but
at the conservation. The slender
that sits slightly under
occasionally also eat seaweed
64-year-old figure has a glistening
the equator, is a land
and algae. To make sure that these
smile and dark skin as a result of
blessed with year-long
fellows are safe on the island, a
long exposure under the sun, one of
summers that many
sea turtle conservation center stands
the consequences of his job.
people easily call home. However,
right in the heart of Kuta Beach
the island does not only belong
with a massive turtle statue made
turtles came up to lay eggs in Kuta
to humans. Bali is also home to
of concrete, which also functions as
Beach,” Gung Aji stated. “Before
beautiful nature and unique species,
a hatchling area for the eggs. The
that, sea turtles already came to
one of them being Lepidochelys
institution is named Kuta Beach Sea
lay eggs but there were no strict
Olivacea or also known as Olive
Turtle Conservation (KBSTC).
laws to protect them. Plenty of the
Ridley sea turtle, a medium-sized sea
“It was back in 2001 when sea
eggs were sold on the street for
turtle species with a distinctive olive
NIGHT CALLS
color and heart-shaped carapace
A native man from Kuta named
the government issued a protective
that can grow to almost two feet in
I Gusti Ngurah Tresna, who is
law, everything changed.”
length.
famously known as “Gung Aji” or
These sea turtles are gentle carnivores that consume mostly
consumption. But after 2001, when
Since then, the number of baby
simply “Mr. Turtle” among the locals
sea turtles rocketed, from only 20
and visiting tourists, leads the team
percent, going up to 90 percent.
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BALI&BEYOND JUNE 2017