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History of Turtle Conservation
in Sabah
History
of Turtle Conservation in Sabah I
Nesting
Areas I Nesting
Information I The
Hatcheries I Life
Cycle I Some
Do's and Don'ts
Conservation measures were first introduced in 1927 to protect the
hawksbill turtle which were being hunted off Kudat for their shells.
Closed seasons for turtle hunting were introduced by the then British
North Borneo Company which proved to be partially successful.
In 1964 the Turtle Conservation Ordinance of 1952 was repealed
and the Fauna Conservation 1963 (Act No. 11) came into force. Under
this Act, 8 islands namely: Selingan, Gulisan, Bakkungan Kecil,
Tegapil, Lankayan, Billean, Koyan Koyan and Nunu Nunukan were constituted
as Turtle Farms giving exclusive rights for tutle eggs collection
to successful tenderers.
On 1 August 1966 the first turtle hatchery in Malaysia was set
up on Selingan, funded entirely by the State goverment. In 1971
it acquired Selingan, Bakkungan Kecil and Gulisan. By 1972 these
3 islands were constituted as Game and Bird Sanctuaries under the
Forestry Department. In 1977 the goverment converted the islands
into a Marine Park. Today permanent staff monitor the turtle activities
including tagging them.
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