NOVEMBER 2008

HATCH has been very busy over the past few months.  Below is a list of updates:

1.) HATCH and Hlami Association for Turtle Conservation and Hope are now registered in the state of Florida as a non-profit organization.  We have identified a board of directors that include professional scientists that have experience with sea turtle conservation, public education, grant writing, and management.

2.) Last year we did two things to help promote the ecotourism possibility in Ada Foah: we had our project prominently described in the Bradt Travel Guide to Ghana and we passed out brochures to hotels in Accra.  Since doing these two things, the Ghana Wildlife Division has reported Ada Foah received more tourists in 2008 than in any previous year.  Most of these visitors (international tourists and Ghanaians) came to Ada Foah to watch a nesting sea turtle.  The hotel and restaurant owners have seen increased business and are hopeful that more people continue to visit the area.

3.) We have acquired enough support from NOAA to purchase two four-wheel ATVs, a commercial freezer, and a gas generator for the field station.  The US Navy is kindly shipping the ATVs and freezer from the US with an expected delivery of February 2009.  HATCH is going to work closely with NOAA to initiate marine mammal surveys in the region.

4.) The field site will be visited by students from Western Washington University in December 2008 as part of a National Science Foundation funded Study Abroad program.  The fifteen undergraduate students will work closely with HATCH to assist in sea turtle nesting surveys and to analyze the integration of the community into our conservation efforts.

5.) Andy Agyekumhene has mostly completed his thesis work at the University of Ghana, but he will be back for another season this year.  He will be joined by two graduate students from Florida Gulf Coast University: Sarah Funk and Andee Naccarato.  They will begin their thesis research while working on the beach in Ada Foah.

Phil Allman is visiting Ghana in December and will stay at the field site for one month.  We have a lot of things planned for this coming season so please continue watching our updates page for more information on the 2008-09 nesting season.......our third season in Ada Foah!!!

JUNE 2008

    Click on this link to help protect endangered monkeys of West of Africa:

               Tanoe Swamps Forest

MAY 2008

    Andy continues to monitor the beach for nesting sea turtles; however, only a few sea turtles have nested since the end of February.  We are now entering a low period for nesting activity so Andy is concentrating his efforts the community education programs and his thesis research.

    Andy and a few other students from the University of Ghana participated in an observer training program sponsored by the US National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).  We are now working closely with NOAA and hope to establish collaborative work that will include marine mammal surveys in the area.

    We have sold a lot of t-shirts over the past few months and continue to get emails of support from international travelers as well as Ghanaians.  The money earned will fund school and community education programs through 2008 and will allow us to purchase one or two public education billboard signs.  Thank you for your support and we hope you and your friends will continue showing support in the future. 

FEBRUARY 2008

    Megan has now left Ghana after volunteering for almost three months in Ada Foah.  While in Ghana, she assisted Andy with his masters research (see RESEARCH section), conducted nesting surveys as part of the tagging program, and helped advertised the sea turtle walks.  Her and Andy distributed brochures to hotel owners in Ada Foah as well as in Accra.  The brochures were a success, the Ghana Wildlife Division conducted more sea turtle walks this past nesting season than any season prior.  Additionally, the sea turtle walks were requested not only international travelers but also domestic tourists that read the brochures in Accra.

    Andy continues his research and is collecting some important data concerning predation rates and hatching success on this beach.  He is also finding some interesting correlations with beach profile and nesting sites.  These data were recently presented at the Sea Turtle Symposium (annual meeting of the International Sea Turtle Society).  Andy will continue the nesting surveys until November 2008 and provide us with the first year-long nesting data from Ada Foah.

    We are already starting to think about next year and are hoping to raise more money to purchase an ATV motorbike and be able to support two volunteers during the 2008-2009 nesting season.  If you are interested in participating in our sea turtle conservation efforts then please contact Phil Allman and be sure to keep an eye on the job board at seaturtle.org. 

    I would like to acknowledge the wonderful work by: Emmanuel Tetteh Kuhameh

                http://www.fredd66.com/GBH/CREATE2/index.htm

    Emmanuel owns a beach-front hotel in Accra and is very concerned with the number of turtles that are slaughtered and sold to a nearby restaurant.  He is using profits from his hotel to purchase the turtles from the poachers before they are killed.  He then paints them and releases them with the understanding from the poachers they will not kill any turtles with paint on them.  This is certainly not a long-term solution to the problem of poaching; however, it is something and it is working for now.  He is hoping to increase his business by sharing his story with tourists that visit Ghana.  If you visit Ghana and would like to support his work, please visit the above webpage for contact information.  We wish him the best and are grateful for his efforts and interest in saving Ghana's sea turtles.

NOVEMBER 2007

I made a quick trip to Ghana and met with Ghana Wildlife Division and the University of Ghana to ensure that everyone was organized for the 07-08 nesting season.  The biggest news to share is that all necessary parties signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that gives the house over to the Department of Fisheries and Oceanography at the University of Ghana.  The house will now officially be used for our sea turtle research program and for any other research projects conducted by students or faculty of the University of Ghana or any institution around the globe that enters into a collaborative effort.

Megan McSherry, our volunteer for the 07-08 season, arrived while I was in Ghana.  She is helping Andy Agyekumhene and George Baffour (two graduate students from the University of Ghana) with their research and the tagging surveys.  She will also work closely with the Ghana Wildlife Division to continue the education work in the classroom and in the communities.

The week-long trip was too short, but did give me ample time to make sure everyone is organized and know what they are going to be doing during this nesting season.  Andy has already started his project and George will begin very soon.  They are both presenting a poster at the upcoming meeting for the International Sea Turtle Society in Baja California, Mexico.  As a group, we submitted four abstracts for this important meeting. 

Megan also plans to send me routine field updates for me to share with everyone.  You can click on the link above (in the green) to follow her field updates through the current nesting season.  I hope you will check the website often for continuous updates as well develop the program and the site.  Thank you for your interest and support for sea turtle conservation in West Africa.