Fiji’s Fisheries Department has made a public appeal for assistance on the monitoring of turtles as the spawning season approaches.
The spawning season begins next month until April.
Principal fisheries officer North Joji Vakawaletabua said people needed to respect the spawning period.
“Our sea turtles are becoming rare every year as most of them continue to be killed for consumption in the Pacific including Fiji,” Mr Vakawaletabua said.
“We are appealing to members of the public to report those that kill sea turtles.
“People can report these matters to their fish wardens, to the nearest police station or nearest fisheries department office.
“We will be keeping a look out and monitoring situations in our coastal settlements in the North,” he said.
“The sea turtles normally take 30 to 50 years to reproduce, which is a really long time.
“Therefore, we need to consider the future of these important creatures for the sake of our future generations.”
Mr Vakawaletabua said those caught slaying sea turtles during the spawning season would be prosecuted.
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