By J. Jala and Helen Castano | 02:08 PM July 13, 2020
A lifeless leatherback sea turtle (Dermochelys coriacea) was found in the sea waters off an island-barangay of Cataban in Talibon town.
According to Elpidio Palaca, Community Environment and Natural Resources Office (CENRO)-Talibon, the marine reptile was found inside the fishing net of a local fisherman around 11:450 a.m. Sunday, July 12, 2020.
When the fisherman pulled the net and checked, the turtle was found to have already died.
The turtle weighed about 200 kilograms and was 1.9 meters long.
It is set to be transported to Tagbilaran City on Wednesday after the National Museum in Bohol signified interest in conducting taxidermy for museum exhibition purposes.
The leatherback was named for its unique “leathery” shell, which is composed of a layer of thin, tough, rubbery skin, strengthened by thousands of tiny bone plates.
It is listed as endangered under the U.S. Federal Endangered Species Act and classified as vulnerable in 2013 (facing a high risk of extinction in the wild in the immediate future) by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources.
