Rangers at Cocos Island, a Costa Rican national park in the Pacific
Ocean, say they recently found an endangered green sea turtle hooked by
fishermen in protected waters. The turtle was released alive, but
injured, and conservation officials say the episode highlights the
threat of illegal long-line fishing.
"Pirate fishermen are wreaking havoc on sea turtles
and sharks of the Pacific, even at this remote 'protected' site, more
than 350 miles from the mainland, destroying one the most incredible
hotspots of marine biodiversity in the Pacific," biologist Todd Steiner,
executive director of the Sea Turtle Restoration Project, said in a
statement this week.
These "pirate fisherman" are often trying to catch sharks for their fins, which are shipped to Asia to make shark fin soup,
a popular delicacy. When the fishermen sneak long-lines (lines that
have hundreds or even thousands of baited hooks) inside the protected
waters around Cocos Island, they risk unintentionally killing wildlife
like turtles, whales, dolphins and seabirds, conservationists say. Park
rangers at Cocos Island have accumulated a mountain of confiscated long-lining gear, Steiner said.
Continued: http://www.livescience.com/23744-endangered-turtle-shark-island.html
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