Management in the Torres StraitManagement in the Torres Strait

Management in the Torres Strait

Green turtles are a traditional part of Torres Strait Islander culture and are hunted from dinghies by hand capture or using the traditional spear. In some of the islands of the Torres Strait Protected Zone (TSPZ) they are still an important source of meat protein. Torres Strait Islanders also eat eggs from green and hawksbill turtles, generally collected where turtles nest close to communities. Turtles are taken at any time during the year. The estimated annual catch by Australian traditional inhabitants in the TSPZ since 1994 is about 2500 turtles per year (Harris 1997). Under the Torres Strait Protected Zone Joint Authority (PZJA), management restricts hunting to traditional inhabitants using traditional spears and prohibits sale of meat, shell or any other product.

Turtles are also caught by Torres Strait Islanders living south of the TSPZ and by Papua New Guineans in the coastal villages of the Papua New Guinea Western Province but there are no estimates of the annual catch from these areas. The Torres Strait Fisheries Assessment Group prepares a stock assessment report annually. This report details the take of marine turtles for the year, data collection methods and other information relevant to the region. It does not include any take by Papua New Guinea but a Papua New Guinea fisheries officer has been trained by AFMA and the Torres Strait Island Coordinating Council to collect data from the Western Province villages.

AFMA monitors turtle catches in two ways. A field data collection officer visits all TSPZ communities to collect catch and effort data. All schools in the Torres Strait islands and on Cape York collect catch data using a special calendar and sticker program. Both methods record size and sex information. AFMA conducts an education program at all schools, with islander officers teaching children about the life cycle of turtles and the need for a conservative approach to their harvesting. Similar education of adult hunters occurs through community meetings and AFMA’s weekly fisheries radio program. AFMA has prepared posters, fact sheets and other material on turtle conservation in Torres Strait. AFMA has assisted the high schools with a flatback and green turtle tagging program and run a promotional drive in all communities to encourage the return of turtle tags.

The Island Coordinating Council (ICC) and some other communities believe that levels of indigenous harvest need to be based on sound scientific assessment of target stocks.