Dubai Turtle Rehabilitation Project returns 101 turtles back into the ocean

Jumeirah releases 101 rehabilitated turtles back into the ocean.

In celebration of World Sea Turtle Day, the Dubai Turtle Rehabilitation Project (DTRP) today successfully returned 101 critically endangered hawksbill turtles back to their natural habitat following several months of rehabilitation at Burj Al Arab and Madinat Jumeirah.

101 children, including competition winners, pupils from a local school and hotel guests, released the turtles from the beach of Madinat Jumeirah back into the Arabian Gulf.

The Turtle rehabilitation project is a collaboration between Jumeirah’s Aquarium team and the Wildlife Protection Office. It has been running since 2004 and has so far released over 500 rescued sea turtles back into Dubai’s waters. This year alone, over 350 sick or injured sea turtles have been treated by the Dubai Turtle Rehabilitation Project team of marine biologists after washing up on the region’s beaches.

The event, which attracted a large crowd with children’s activities and a taste of Jumeirah hospitality, was designed to raise awareness of the importance of the turtle rehabilitation programme, issues facing turtles, their risk of extinction (with an 87% decline in the hawks bill turtle population in the last three decades) and conservation of the marine environment.