Fishing nets and heavy waves are believed to be the main causes of the high numbers of stranded turtles.
All the turtles rescued are Olive Ridleys, one of the smaller species of marine turtles. All had leg injuries – two had legs missing entirely. This was a result, rescuers believe, of them being cut by filaments from seine nets used by fishing boats.
One turtle, just over a metre long, was found with a large gash in the top of its shell, believed to have been caused by a boat propeller.
All are now receiving treatment at the Phuket Marine Biological Center (PMBC).
The chief of the Rare Marine Animals Section of the PMBC, Dr Kongkiat Kitthiwattanawong, said 60 per cent of turtles found stranded on beaches in the area are alive, but of these, 85 per cent are injured, mostly by fine strands of fishing net becoming wrapped around the turtles’ flippers and eventually working through the flesh, right down to the bone.
In the past three years, Dr Kongkiat said, low numbers of Ridley have been found coming to the Andaman shore to lay their eggs, which has scientist worried that they may be approaching extinction in the Andaman Sea.
However, the number of stranded Ridleys found this year may, in a sense, be good news.
“It may be a good sign that Ridleys still exist [in the Andaman Sea],” said Dr Kongkiat.
“However, it’s also a bad sign that more and more turtles are being endangered by human activities.”
Turtles losing their legs to net filament tangles are particularly vulnerable, he explained.
Sometimes when a turtle is injured, it will float on the surface, he said. Under the sun, its lungs – despite the protection of the shell – can become burned, with the result that the turtle can no longer dive. Most die.
“We’d like to urge everyone not to dump any kind of garbage into the sea. A small piece of junk can leave this kind of creature unable to survive,” said Mr Kongkiat.
Apart from the six turtles rescued today, another four were found on nearby beaches this week, along with a dolphin and a dugong. Heavy waves are believed to have contributed to their stranding.