This is the first time we were in Cherating at the right season. You could be picked up at your hotel, for RM50 each, or you could find your own way to Pantai Teluk Mak Nik (D'Monica Bay) at Kemaman, Terengganu and pay only RM30 per person. We opted for the latter, since Teluk Pantai Mak Nik is only a fifteen-minute-drive from our hotel in Cherating.
For the fee, you get to watch the turtles laid their eggs (I was lucky as there were four turtles that came to nest on the beach that night) and helped to release the hatchlings into the sea.
A turtle heading back to the sea after it has laid its eggs
78 eggs from turtle with tag no. 8991
I could hear the explosion of breath and quick inhalation as the turtle laboured and expelled its eggs. After the turtle has covered its eggs, the ranger removed them and took them to a sanctuary where they will hatch in 40 - 45 days' time. Once hatched, they would be released back to the sea. The turtles we were asked to help release that night was only a few hours old.
My hatchling
Hubby's hatchling
Some were going in the wrong direction....one even crawled towards me.
The odds are stacked against their survival. Out of one thousand hatchlings, only one or two survive to reach adulthood, at 25 years. They get caught in fishermen's nets, under a boat propeller, or preyed upon by fish, crabs, birds and humans We can't control the other factors, but we can say NO to turtle eggs and soup. There are many other eggs and meat, why consume turtles and their eggs??!!
They eat mainly sea grass, seaweeds and jellyfish. When humans throw plastic bags which are washed into the sea, the turtles mistook them for jellyfish, ate them and died. So, please do not throw any plastic bags at the beach or riverbanks as they will be carried into the sea. Let us help protect our gentle, defenceless turtles.
Other topics on Cherating:
1) Mangrove river tour
2) Payung Cafe
3) Suria Cherating, The Good and The Bad
