News Staff
Published Dec 14, 2017 at 1:01 pm (Updated Dec 14, 2017 at 1:01 pm)
 

Turtle conservation: from left, Dr Ian Walker, BAMZ Principal Curator
GIR chief operating officer Marie Joelle Chapleau and Jennifer Gray,
of the Bermuda Turtle Project (Photograph supplied)

A reinsurance company has donated $12,500 to the Bermuda Turtle Project.

Global Indemnity Re, which has supported the Bermuda Zoological Society for four years, made the donation to mark the turtle conservation scheme’s 50th anniversary.

Marie Joelle Chapleau, chief operating officer of the reinsurance firm, said: “We believe that conserving our beautiful environment and wildlife is important here in Bermuda.

“Global Indemnity Re is pleased to continue to support the Bermuda Turtle Project with the Bermuda Zoological Society.”

The project is a joint effort between the BZS, the Sea Turtle Conservatory, the Atlantic Conservation Partnership, and the Bermuda Aquarium, Museum and Zoo.

Its mission is to conserve sea turtles through research and education.

The BZS said: “Sea turtles are an important and fascinating species, and worldwide they are at risk.

“As we enter into the 50th Anniversary, we must continue to secure a sustainable future for one of the most valued sea turtle research, education and conservation programmes in the world.”

The BTP has assembled the biggest catalogue of information on green turtles in the world since it was established in 1968 when Henry Clay Frick started to tag sea turtles.

Dr Frick, a founding member of the Caribbean Conservation Corporation, turned the project over to Peter Meylan and Anne Meylan in 1991.

Dr Meylan and Ms Meylan undertook computerisation, analysis, and distribution of the data.

The BZS added: “The course not only benefits the conservation of Bermuda green turtles but also continues to provide a platform for conservation managers from many parts of the world, particularly the Caribbean and South America, to learn and develop lifelong friendships and professional contacts to support their conservation work.

“With a successful 50 years behind us, it is important that we set a future course that builds on our wealth of knowledge to help safeguard sea turtles and their habitats in our rapidly changing world.”