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On Sunday, March 12, a local resident informed the Réserve that a loggerhead turtle was in trouble on the beach of Grandes Cayes, having been injured by an arrow from a harpoon gun. The Réserve took the animal to the Hope Estate veterinary clinic, where the arrow was removed from the turtle, and the wound was stitched up. The reptile was put back into the water a little later. Knowing the hunter, the Réserve wrote an official report, which was followed by a hearing for the guilty party at the gendarmerie. The poacher admitted his guilt and said that during a picnic on the beach, one of his friends did not eat meet, so he tried to catch a fish instead. And as it happened, the unlucky turtle was just swimming by at the wrong moment, and ended up with an arrow in his neck that was meant for the fish ! The hunter was found guilty of illegal fishing in a natural reserve and required to pay a fine of 150 Euros and another 500 Euros in damages and interest to the Réserve, as part of a civil action proceeding. The sentence could have been worse for the capture and mutilation of a sea turtle: a fine up to 150,000 Euros and two years in prison.
Saving An Injured Turtle
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La tortue blessée - The wounded turtle
