BY VINCE JACOB VISAYA
TUGUEGARAO CITY (September 2, 2024)—A hawksbill sea turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata) was rescued after it was accidentally trapped in a fish net in Diora Zinungan, Sta. Ana, Cagayan on Saturday, environment workers said on Thursday.
Fisherman John Kenneth Recolizado found the turtle entangled in his net, prompting him to immediately report the matter to the Santa Ana Fishery Station of the Provincial Agriculture Office.
Environmental workers Derick Adap and Jomar Cabingabang of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources – Community Environment and Natural Resources Office-Aparri met with Santa Ana local representatives, and they decided to bring the sea turtle back to its natural habitat after a checkup.
The hawksbill sea turtle, a critically endangered sea turtle belonging to the family Cheloniidae and the only extant species in the genus Eretmochelys, measures 51-cm in length and 48-cm in width.
Environmentalists put the tag PH2179BA so that it can be known immediately in case it is caught or netted in the sea again.