Due to advancing industrialization, population increasement, global warming phenomenon and deteriorating natural environs, various species of creatures have almost become extinct and some have totally disappeared. Sea tortoises are included in these nearly wiped-out creatures.
To safeguard the sea tortoises, preservation works are being carried out in Myanmar’s Thamihla Island.

Higyi Island is located in Ngaputaw Township in delta Ayeyarwaddy Division. Twelve miles away from this island is Thamihla Island with pleasant and beautiful rock formations and sand banks. On the island’s sand bank, a one mile in length and 0.5 mile in width turtle habitat exists. Out of 23 habitats, it is the biggest in Myanmar.

Out of four kinds of sea-turtles, three of them can be observed in Myanmar. Cow-nosed ray, Carambola which is the biggest kind of turtle and shaped like Carambola and Kyae turtles. Some species of turtles have almost become extinct and thus from 1963, the government has encouraged turtle breeding.

On Full Moon and New Moon Days, female turtles crawl to the sand banks and lay 65 to 130 eggs in each pit they had dug-up. The eggs are taken from these shallow pits and moved so the tide cannot reach them. The eggs are then kept in sand pits surrounded by brick walls. The pits are two feet apart from each other.

About 100 eggs are placed in each pit and they are covered with sand and then slightly pressed. Dates are systematically recorded at each pit. Sixty days later, small turtles lets out from the sand pits. To prevent them from going into the sea, the egg pits are covered with bamboo.

These tartlets are kept in a sea-water tank and crushed hermit crab is fed to them. One or two months later, they are set free into the sea.

Ten or fifteen years later, these turtlets become mother turtles and they come back again to lay eggs.

Myanmar has been preserving its rare turtle species and trying to increase its number by going to the root of the problem which is the lost of new born turtles. Now, because of this preservation method, we can observe the growing population of the once near extinct turtles.