pelf-ism is contagious

Note: This is a sticky post.

Nov 26th:
The Turtle Rock Concert was a HUGE HUGE success! We had sooo much fun, there were loud music, face-painting, whacking games, good food and a 45-minute briefing by my Supervisor. Will put up a proper post on that, with pictures of course, when I get back to KT tomorrow :))

Nov 25th:
This is the day! Come with your friends to ISKL, Ampang campus for a host of turtle-related fun and games and food and arts and crafts plus an exhibition and a briefing from noon to 2pm.

But if you cannot make it in the afternoon, there will be a SEATRU-meets-you-get-together at Nu Skool Club in Hotel Melia (opposite TIMES Square) from 8pm to midnight. Volunteers or no volunteers, you’re still invited to come! :))

Nov 23rd:
The photos have been printed and mounted and they are all ready to be exhibited! So see you there!

Nov 22nd:
I bought the much needed mounting boards yesterday to mount the printed photos but I have yet to receive the high resolution files of the shortlisted photos. If I do not receive the rest by tomorrow, I am just going ahead and send whatever I have for printing.

Nov 20th:
The ISKL school teachers have gone a step further in promoting the Turtle Rock Fundraising Concert this coming Saturday, on Nov 25th, by releasing a promotional video for the concert! How cool is that?!

The Photography Competition had officially ended on Nov 14th, and we now have the winners (though we are going to keep you guessing for the time being). If you haven’t already seen the pictures submitted by SEATRU’s ex-volunteers, head on over. Apart from the winning entries, we will also print and display some other exhibition-worthy pictures

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Did you read this on The Star Online yesterday?

Terengganu ‘no’ to turtle egg trade

KUALA TERENGGANU: Terengganu will not issue any licence for turtle egg trading.

Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Idris Jusoh said he would not consider any proposal to issue such licences.

“As the chief minister, I have great intention to preserve the leatherback turtles here,” he told The Star, commenting on press reports on Oct 12 that the state government was expected to review the Fisheries Act to allow the issuance of licences for turtle egg traders.

“I will not think of legalising the trade in turtle eggs.”

The reports, quoting state Agriculture and Regional Development committee chairman Datuk Mohd Jidin Shafee, said the state government proposed the move to monitor the sale of turtle eggs.

Following the reports, the British Broadcasting Corporation condemned the proposal as a “crazy” plan.

Idris said the state government would protect the state’s turtles and would not go back on its plans to preserve them.

The Menteri Besar did not exactly comment on the statement released by the st*pid politician but then his comments showed that he cared about what other people (in this case the BBC, which reported that the proposal was a crazy plan) think of the state government of Terengganu.

But then again, he said “I have great intention to preserve the leatherback turtles here” but what about the other three species of turtles that nest in the Malaysian waters? So if he were to legalize the sale of green turtle eggs in the future, he wouldn’t be seen as the Chief Minister who broke his promises to the rakyat, would he? Are there other hidden agendas behind his short-and-can-easily-be-misinterpreted comment? Or did he merely utter those short sentences to please certain parties?

Maybe I think too much. Bleh.

Have you read this in The Star today?

So, apparently, the Asian Giant Softshell Turtle (Pelochelys cantorii) was found dead at the Marine Park Unit dock in the afternoon two days ago. The Head of the Marine Park Unit, Shireen Hing, contacted my Supervisor, and we rushed to town to have a look at the animal carcass.

When we arrived, the carcass was tied to a pole at the dock, and it was bloated and floating.

We wanted to do some measuring so we pulled the carcass to the side. It looked soooo much bigger when it was pulled it up, compared to just by looking at it from the top.

Check out the cute little eyes. And the even cuter nostrils.

So we got down to measuring its length and width. No, I wasn’t SITTING on the stick. Or rock. Or whatever.

And we turned it turtle. And then we took more close-up pictures of the eyes, nostrils, claws, bloated limbs and what-nots.

Then the next day (which was yesterday), we arranged for a Rodeo to haul the carcass back to campus. Thank God the driver and the other students were there to help out. Otherwise we would need to get help from the Marine Park staff.

So back at KUSTEM, we dug a hole to bury it, but before that, we performed a “post-mortem” on it.

I am sure vets will laugh at the way we did it. But hey, what do you expect from biologists?! None of us were trained vets, you know. And yours truly wasn’t involved in cutting it open - she was busy documenting the whole process. Lame, I know *winks*

And, if you noticed, I mentioned “post-mortem” in inverted commas because it wasn’t exactly one. Apart from the empty stomach and collapsed lungs, we didn’t really discover anything else. Oh yes, and the fact that we couldn’t find the gonads. Opps..

So, if you think gory pictures will NOT affect your appetite, click here to view the insides of the softshell turtle (opens in a new window).

And finally, we burried the turtle. May you rest in peace, and may the rest of your kind escape such fate.

More about Pelochelys cantorii here and here.