BY JOHN HOUANIHAU
The Solomon Islands is considered one of the main nesting sites for Marine Turtles in the western Pacific Ocean according to the recently launched National Plan of Action for Marine Turtles (NPOA) 2023 -2027.
Based on the NPOA, whilst young leatherbacks have not been recorded in the Solomon Islands, adult females do nest on a number of beaches throughout the country.
While islands such as Isabel and Rendova are likely to have the most nesting females, all sites are worthy of protection given the critically endangered status of this species.
According to the recently launched document, Rendova and Isabel Island host the greatest number of nesting leatherbacks.
From 2019 to 2021 an average of 165 nests were recorded on Rendova and Isabel, the most productive beaches, Haveo and Sasakalo recorded 97 and 80 nests respectively from 2020 to 2021.
According to Hamilton et al. 2021, as quoted in the NPOA document, Arnavon Island is the most important site for hawksbill turtles although found to nest or forge in several sites in the country.
Olive ridleys have been recorded on Guadalcanal, Wagina, and Makira and hatching was also observed by the Wai-Hau Ranger in Malaita province, however, the number remains unknown given the rareness of observation.
Amongst the five Marine Turtle species recorded in the Solomon Islands are Loggerhead turtle and green turtle.
According to NPOA 2023-2027, most of the marine turtle species is listed as vulnerable under the IUCN Red list and listed in Appendix I of the CITES convention.
