Redang Island, Malaysia: Milky way & lots of star at stranded turtle beach :)

Redang Island, Malaysia, Terengganu, Kuala Terengganu, Long Beach, Chagar Hutang, Turtle sanctuary, Sea Turtle Research Unit Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, SEATRU UMT, Pulau Redang, Santuari Penyu


10 June 2016

We depart from Shahbandar jetty (Kuala Terengganu) around 12pm and arrive in Redang Is one hour and half later. As we need another boat to Chagar Hutang around 2.30pm, we decide to walk around the Long beach first. The sand is nice, look like white flour huhu. The water was very crystal blue color.

From Redang Is. to Chagar Hutang it takes around another one hour. Basically Chagar Hutang is located on Northern side of Redang Is. This private area now owned by Sea Turtle Research Unit (Seatru) Universiti Malaysia Terengganu for turtle conservation activities. 

Ooh before our boat land, we saw mating turtles near the offshore. Huhu. After check in actually I don’t know what I suppose to do, but I saw Gayatri, Brian and Siu Man volunteers from Sunway University swim near the bay and I just join them. J  Well as this area are private and protected under Malaysia Marine Park, the coral are healthy. If you swim on the right side the Chagar Hutang Bay, sometime you can find black tip shark swim around here and blue spotted ray are very commonly found here.

8.30pm

After dinner, we start looking for the landed turtle, all of us total 18 people were divided into two groups. For first group: 3 Seatru staff (Abang Man, Aimi & Syafinaz), 2 UMT Seatru volunteer (Arif & I) and 3 students from Sunway University (Gaya, Brian & Siu Man) meanwhile for the second group was 1 UMT Seatru volunteer (Ang), 2 Trophimundo student (Nadia & Isabella), 1 intern student (Martin) and the rest UMTJ volunteer.

Green turtle after laying egg

Source from https://www.facebook.com/seatruUMT

The turtle is actually sensitive to the white light, so all the light supposed to shut off. We use torch light with covered with red plastic to looking for the turtle as red usually have shorter wavelengths. Turtle usually digs some nest, but only the last nest it will lay the egg. After it finishes, the nest labelled rope and recorded In the log book. If the turtle is untagged yet, we will tag it first. That's why sometimes we know the turtle came from the Vietnam based on the tag. We patrol until around 4.30am as its rain after that.

11 Jun 2016

Good morning!! I wake up early today. I walk around the beach and I saw Martin also have wake up and walk at another side of the beach. I found some sea glass here, but not so nice, but nevermind I collect it too. huhuh. I did not plan to swim as it maybe just myself, but after a while I just sit down and saw Martin in the water, I just join him. Well first I thought Martin was one of the Trophimundo students, but actually he is the intern student from Australia under Dr Andrew Ngadin. We stop swim as we saw Abang Man, Ang, Nadia and Issabell walk into the beach for the nesting check. As this is my first time, even I have come here on 2014 but it's just a simple visit, I don’t know what I suppose to do as well as Nadia and Isabell I guesssed.

 

Basically after 30 days egg incubation in the sand/nest, all eggs were ready to hatch. Baby turtle usually hatched on the night, and we assume all baby turtle was coming out already. But maybe some are not. We dig the nest, and found few baby turtle come out. All hatched eggs, effected egg by parasite and egg that effected by maggot are recorded. The total of nests was around 20 and above, not all nest we check for this morning, so Abang Man decide to continue on the early evening.

Can you see baby turtle track below? :)

Well as last night we slept at 4.30am, most of us going to sleep back. Aimi, Syafinaz landed on the hammock meanwhile Martin, Nadia and Isabell are going to swim to the right side of the beach where the black tip shark area was spotted.

4.30 pm

Arif and I going to prawn spa just near the backside of the SEATRU site. I saw Martin and the rest going hiking to the Turtle Rock, but they are too far from us, so I can’t join them. Maybe after this if I have any chance to Chagar Hutang I will plan for hiking to Turtle Rock.

Little cute prawn on my skin..huhuhuh

8.30pm

After lunch, we start patrol again to looking for landed turtle. For group 1, Abang Man, Aimi, Shazwani, Arif and I meawhile for group 2, Martin, Nadia, Isabell and Ang. Well it quiets same as what we do on the last night. Ahha Nadia asks me to play card game and drink (coffee) with them, but after I come I saw everyone sleep already. Haha. All of us slept on the beach by looking to the beautiful sky view. As all light is switched off here, we clearly can see lots of stars, what the coincidence is, if you are lucky we can saw a large milky way here :). aah I saw shooting star too:) :) 

After a little late night conversation with Arif, I fall in sleep around 4.40am I guess.

12 Jun 2016

Morning!

I woke up around 8am and only Martin, Nadia & Isabell still sleep here. After bath, I join Abang Man for the nest check. For this time I gave dug few nests by my own, it’s tiring as sometime the egg is too deep and the sand will fall back into the nest.

It’s quiet rushing, as we depart on 10am, after finish nest check, I go bath again and start packing. Ang, Arif and I depart to Kuala Terengganu.


P/s: If you would like to join Seatru volunteer as I am, you can visit Seatru website as below, and click Volunteer Program. The program runs annually from April to September each year and the slots areone week duration. Everyone are welcome!!

Sea Turtle Research Unit (Seatru)

P/s: Hey I have wrote up about my previous experience on turtle conservation with Seatru at Laguna Redang Island Resort (Redang Long Beach), feel free t click the link below :)

Redang Island, Malaysia: My turtle brother