Abstract:
Thalalla Beach, situated in the southern coast of Sri Lanka has a high potential as a nesting beach and
attracts quite a number of sea turtles (STs) for nesting in the year-round. The objectives of the survey
are to identify Geographical importance of Thalalla beach as sea turtle (ST) nesting beach and to
documenting the human threats to the STs and their nesting habitat. The survey was conducted between
the period of April and December 2016 within the 3KMs distance in Thalalla beach. Field visitation
carried out 6 days randomly and spend around 4-5 hours each time. Human activities related to the STs
and turtle nesting activities were recorded by direct observation. Besides, questionnaire survey was
conducted with 30 local people and officials. Purposive sampling technique was employed to select
respondents. Six such discussions were conducted each lasting not more than 40 minutes. During the
month of December higher number of visits by Leatherback, Green and Olive Ridley to Thalalla beach
for nesting was recorded. STs visit the beach for nesting during night hours, and high from 11.00 pm to
1.00am compared to other time periods. Thalalla beach attracts mostly Olive Ridley followed by
Hawksbill, Green and Leatherback turtles. The main threat to STs at Thalalla beach is stealing eggs.
The stolen eggs are used for various purposes. This has drastically reduced the number of hatchlings
which go back to the sea. Moreover, especially between December and April killing STs for selling as
food, mainly for locals is one of the unfavorable situations in Thalalla. Since the fishery is the main
livelihood in the Thalalla area, accidental trapping in fishing nets is another threat faced by sea turtles.
According to the survey, a small group of people in the Thalalla area are engaged in making handicraft
using ST’s shells as their main livelihood. Besides, due to the intensive human activities at the beach
replaced the area with more waste materials and this may reduce the arrival number of STs towards the
beach.
