102 Not Out

Disclaimer : This is not about the Bollywood movie, nor is it about a cricket innings.

The following account is about the love of a mother for children whom she will never see in her life. It is the story about children, who fight against all odds, and may not survive. But the 1 in 1000 (or as informal accounts go 1 in 5000) who survives becomes the talk of the town. People spend up to USD 2000 on flights, hotels, visas and snorkel/dive centres just to catch a glimpse of this legend. I am, of course, referring to a Turtle!

Turtle in Perhentian . PC - underwater.com.au

Yes, the affable reptile which causes hearts to flutter underwater, is a sign for biodiversity in oceans, and yes, a highly intelligent species which can recognize you if you did it a good deed even 40 years later. It is a sign of growing old to be wise, of being dependable. Like a legend, it is always sought after by its fans, and even it's farting underwater can cause joy to some viewers (How am I so specific? Errr...)

The dark silhouette in the azure waters is a turtle. Photo taken by the author

Anyway, back to the point, how is it that we typically see only 1-2 turtles in a bay? I mean, you may have seen how large and secure a turtle looks (if not in real life , at least TNMT??). So, how is it that the survival rate is so low?

It all begins with the mother turtle going ashore to lay her eggs. She waits for the night to fall, and slowly trudges her way up the beach. She is looking for a sandy spot with the right depth of sand, so that is it the correct temperature, not susceptible to being washed away by the sea and preferable has a tree's shade to protect from excess sunlight.

The turtle trudging its way up a beach to find the perfect spot

The turtle trudging up the beach in  its quest for the perfect spot

Once the turtle finds the perfect spot, she will flail her limbs to create a hole. Though they look fragile, the limbs are strong enough to knock roots out of the way as well! What a mother does for her kids. Once she digs a hole for herself, she will use her hind limbs to create a smaller hole for her to drop her eggs in, and when done, goes into a kind of trance for the next few minutes whilst she lays eggs. In our case, she laid 102 eggs (A typical nest can carry from 90 to 140 eggs).

She then lays there, probably exhausted by the ordeal , which is when we were able to capture this

The mother turtle after laying her eggs. PC Affan Zanila

A turtle cannot identify red light, so if you want to capture a turtle in the dark,, do it silently with red light. PC Affan Zanila

When she gathers her strength, she will proceed to cover up the hole, leaving no traces (well, almost to a Sherlock), and slowly trudges her way back to the sea, probably praying to the Almighty on the welfare of her kids.

Which is just as well because for the next 60 days before they hatch, the eggs have to fight against

1. Ants, Vermins, Snakes and small animals scrounging for easy protein

2. Tourists accidentally disturbing the nest 

3. Poachers - As Affan mentioned to me, this was the 12th time a turtle was laying eggs on our beach in the last 2 months. The previous 11 times (1000+ eggs) was caught by poachers and sold in the market for RM 5 (USD 1.25+) per piece. Our vigil, and calling in a turtle conservation team allowed us to salvage all the eggs in this scenario. These eggs would be taken to special hatcheries, where after the babies are born, they would be released to the seas

The saved turtle eggs. 102 Not Out!

4. Birds and Fish - Even after the turtles are born, they need to find their way to the sea, where they may be picked off by birds, and fish

5. Boats - Even if the turtle manages to survive the above ordeal, it may be hit by a boat when it comes up for air

Even though they are going to be up against all odds, the unabashed joy and enthusiasm where they rush to the seas on hatching/ being released is a joy to behold.

The author releasing a turtle in the sea . PC Shagun Dalmia nee Saraf

 It is a celebration of life, a token of appreciation of the care provided by the mother, a turtle fulfilling its destiny by going where it is supposed to:

So hopefully 40 years later when I am an old and fragile guy swimming in the sea and a shark comes to attack me, this legend will come in the frame and say, "Hey Dad, Don't worry! I Got this"