SEA LIFE Appeal to Fund Turtle rescue in the Med'

The 26 attractions aim to raise £350,000 to build the much-needed facility on the Greek island of Zante.

Donations are already flooding in from visitors, and a special fundraising Turtle Action Day has been planned on Tuesday 1st August.

"A massive 80-per cent of all loggerhead turtle nests in the Mediterranean are found on the beaches of south west Zante", said marine biologist Rob Hicks.

“For the last 30 years the turtles have been battling to survive in the wake of mass package tourism.

 “Night-time beach activities stop females nesting, beach furniture blocks their path, umbrellas damage nests and bright lights from beachfront development lure hatchlings away from the sea to die from exhaustion or dehydration.”

 Another problem is a growing number of injuries suffered by adult turtles in collisions with pleasure craft.

 “At the moment the only rescue centre for these casualties is a day’s journey away in Athens,” said Rob.

 “That’s why we want to help build a facility that could save many more turtles’ lives and also advise holidaymakers how they can avoid damaging nests and endangering adult turtles.”

To achieve this goal, the SEA LIFE network has joined forces with Zante-based wildlife group Earth, Sea & Sky, whose founder Yannis Vardakastanis helped relocate two severely disabled turtles from Athens to the Scarborough SEA LIFE centre six years ago.

 “Antiopi and Lefteris were so badly injured they could never return to the wild, and needed to be found permanent new homes to free up space urgently needed for other casualties at the Athens rescue centre,” said Yannis.

 Antiopi had suffered a terrible head-wound that left her with long-term brain damage, and Lefteris had lost two flippers.

 With the co-operation of the Sea Turtle Protection Society (Archelon) both turtles were re-located to Scarborough where they remain today…flourishing in a huge tropical ocean tank.

 Yannis, who lives and works in the small village of Gerakas on Zante’s southern tip, built his own wildlife information centre there 10 years ago, but has long harboured a dream to replace it with a purpose-built rescue centre.

 He is thrilled that the SEA LIFE network has once again answered his appeal for help.

 “We hope to reach the fundraising target within two years, so Yannis can have the rescue centre built and operating by 2008 at the latest,” said Rob Hicks, “but we are going to need a lot of help.”

 SEA LIFE staff are hoping that visitors and others learning of the Appeal will be moved to plan their own fundraising efforts on August 1^st, from sponsored events to jumble sales.

 The rescue centre will be run on a strictly charitable basis, with any proceeds over-and-above the Appeal target helping off-set running costs such as veterinary and food bills.