| | Giant
Leatherback Sea Turtles
(November through February) | |
| Just
outside Omboué lie the nesting grounds of the endangered Leatherback Turtle,
the largest reptile on earth weighing in at hundreds of kilograms.
Existing
for more than 65 million years, the now less than 25,000 adult females worldwide
are threatened by pollution, human consumption and commercial fishing nets. In
a positive step forward, the government of Gabon have committed to their protection
by conserving large sections of beach habitat for leatherback nesting. Scientists
now believe that this area of Africa is crucial to their survival.
| Tour
Details: Daily (November through February) | | Time
of Departure: Evening | Mode
of Transport: 4 X 4 & Walking | |
(actual departure decided by tidal times) | |
 Photo
by J.G. Collomb, Wildlife Conservation Society | Against
a backdrop of rolling surf and bleach white sand, we'll watch as female Leatherbacks
emerge from the ocean at night and make their arduous journey ashore to a position
above high tide.
We'll witness the nesting process in action and observe
the use of their front and rear flippers to dig and excavate a pit to deposit
their eggs in the sand before returning to the sea - all in the course of several
hours! |
|
Photo by
GP Sounguet, Aventures Sans Frontières | |  Photo
by J.G. Collomb, Wildlife Conservation Society | | | | | |
|
|
