The last three weeks have seen an alarming increase in turtle deaths along the coast of Balochistan, mainly due to entanglement in fishing gear, the World Wide Fund for Nature-Pakistan (WWF-P) announced on Wednesday.
The conservation organization highlighted a particularly disturbing incident on April 15, when the remains of three different species of turtles – a loggerhead, a green and an olive ridley – were all discovered in the western bay of Gwadar on the same day.
Muhammad Moazzam Khan, a technical adviser for WWF-P, expressed grave concern over the situation. ‘We are seriously concerned as the population of all marine turtles is facing serious threats,’ he stated, confirming that fishermen had reported spotting between 15 and 20 turtle carcasses in recent weeks.
Mr Khan described the recent events as a significant setback to the ongoing conservation work undertaken by WWF-P, government departments, and other partner organisations. He underscored the urgent need to improve awareness about marine life protection among both fishing communities and the general public to prevent further losses.