Fundraiser for turtle sanctuary in Roatan at the Asylum

[toddthecat]

Trinity Diving is hosting a fundraiser to expand upon the turtle sanctuary at the Asylum opposite the West End. Anyone who has been there has seen how Serena protects the Hawksbill turtles from poachers and predators. She has successfully rehabilitated many of them and released them back to the sea in the hopes they will have a better chance at repopulating the reef. Sadly, most turtles eggs are poached and the ones that hatch see a massacre due to natural predators. The survivors then have to try and mature with a huge risk of falling to predators or human poachers.

We would love to expand upon her work to allow for more turtles to be rescued and raised up! For everyone who has had the opportunity to coexist with turtles underwater, you surely know how amazing they are to see in their natural habitat. Let's do what we can to protect these cool turtles and give them a chance before we possibly lose them forever!

Please see our fundraising page and feel free to add us on Facebook for regular updates!

Our fundraiser: Turtle Sanctuary Project - Roatan, Honduras by Jesse Kuzma - GoFundMe
Our facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Trinity-Diving/145317951549?fref=ts

 

[RTBDiver]

We would love to expand upon her work to allow for more turtles to be rescued and raised up!

Is taking eggs from nests rescuing? I am reading your post as well as the links and there seems to be some discrepencies, I am sure that all wan to help, that is not quesyioned but the way about it seems odd, Is a turtle held captive for 3 years and hand fed canned tuna able to survive the real world? Is there a Marine biologist involved in this program?

 

[toddthecat]

We do not take eggs from nests. Rather, we simply mention the fact that predation of young turtles is heavy after hatching. Young (or adult) turtles that are injured by predators or man are rescued and rehabilitated. Our model is based upon the Old Hegg Turtle Sanctuary in Bequia, West Indies. Please feel free to learn more on their sanctuary here:
The Old Hegg Turtle Sanctuary- Bequia, St. Vincent & the Grenadines

Thanks for your interest!

 

[RTBDiver]

I am a homeowner and landowner in Roatan, No interest in how they do it elswhere, Your links mention taking from nests, Maybe you should reevaluate the links, Also, Once Again, Can you provide the name of the Marine Biologist you have that is in charge of the health and well being of these animals, BTW Your MSDT Number seems to have one too many numbers,

 

[ivakdiver]

I couldn't see any reference to taking eggs from a nest?

 

[toddthecat]

BTW Your MSDT Number seems to have one too many numbers,

I can understand some of your comments/questions, but now you're just proving yourself as a forum troll. Feel free to use PADI's procheck on my number. Here's the link for you:
PADI Pro Chek

Speaking of which, seeing as you seem to know so much about PADI Pro numbers, what's yours? If it's 5 digits, I will admit I'm fairly impressed by the time you have been a PADI Pro. That's quite a while.

And yes, I've known for a while that you are a homeowner in Roatan, your blue house is very distinctive. I remember first hearing about you when you were posting pictures of a man's penis while he urinated off a dive boat near your home. There's no forgetting that

And as ivakdiver mentions, there is no reference to taking eggs. Please feel free to direct me to where that is said. I would like to fix it, should it exist. But wait....it doesn't!

Don't be as stubborn as a donkey...Which can be seen here:
No no no Donkey - Family Guy - YouTube

 

[Mike]

What's reducing the turtle population so much to cause the need for so much money and energy to be spent on helping them? Seems like there are turtle projects all over the Caribbean. You can't harvest turtles for food right? Are they being poached?

 

[toddthecat]

Mike, yes there are turtle poachers, and yes, turtles are eaten by humans.

 

[RTBDiver]

OK, So I was mistaken in my interpretation, That said, the article mentions feeding the baby turtles tuna
for 6 months ....., Are all these baby turtles in need of rehab ? If they hatch and could swim shouldn't they just be allowed to do their own thing even if it is safer to stay in a pen? Why are they kept for 3 years? Certainly if they have an injury that takes three years to recover from they will never survive in the wild. Does this program have any Honduran or any other countries Non-profit status? Is it completely transparent with the books? You know as well as anyone how many fly by night organizations come and go and while there are some that do well there are many more that do not even if they had the right idea to start with.
Your memory also fails you as I only posted pics of a man urinating near shore in an ara with families and children around, However his equipment was not posted.

 

[toddthecat]

Our actions and allocation of monetary funds will be completely transparent. We are in the process of obtaining non profit organization status the the Honduran government. It is a process, as I'm sure you know, that takes some time. Our intention is to procure as many materials as possible, if not all, locally on the island. This will facilitate transparency of the organization by maintaining procurement within one government as opposed to two. It also saves a lot of time and hassle with regard to customs, shipping, etc., while keeping funds collected for the project spent within Honduras. We also invite anyone with an interest in the project to come assist as they will be able to not only help, but have the ability to see exactly what our funds are going into. The processes can be lengthy, but they get done. We have conducted other charitable fundraisers in the past, including providing a shipping container with computers for a school in Grenada, as well as several donations of food and clothes to an orphanage there. We are familiar with the process of getting things to our destinations for different projects.

The condition of different turtles will dictate their release back to the wild. At Camp Bay two years ago we had a turtle rehabilitating from several wounds caused by poachers. Some of them can take longer than others to heal. In the meantime, we do regularly clean and feed them. Turtle growth and reproduction is a slow process. With a 30 to 50 year lifespan and age of maturity being estimated between ages 10 to 25, spending 1-3 years in a sanctuary is not particularly as long as it sounds in order to gain some size. They are tiny when they hatch but by maturity average a weight approaching 200lbs.

We understand concerns regarding financial responsibility for this project. All purchases and project costs will be tracked and fully available as public record, as well as being reported to the Honduran government.