Turtle hatchlings delivered to safety, thanks to passers-by
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Yeo Shu Hui
It was a challenging search-and-rescue mission, but in the end, Mr Brendan Goh managed to get six turtle hatchlings out of harm's way.
He and his friend were cycling at East Coast Park last Thursday night when they saw a crowd of about 30 people as they approached the National Service Resort and Country Club.
Speaking to The Straits Times yesterday, the 39-year-old, who owns a business in the horticulture industry, said: "My friend and I were wondering why there was suddenly such a big crowd."
As they got closer, they noticed several people signalling to cyclists to slow down. They then realised that it was because there were turtle hatchlings on the path and some people were trying to pick them up and move them to safety.
The hatchlings were "quite small and it was quite hard to see them in the dark", Mr Goh said. "There were leaves on the Park Connector Network and the hatchlings were smaller than the leaves."
He added that the hatchlings were put into plastic or paper bags and then handed over to someone who released them on the beach.
He said he helped to pick up six hatchlings in total.
Passers-by who arrived earlier told him that they collected about 50 to 100 hatchlings, he said.
"From what I learnt from my friend who does some work in marine biology... these were critically endangered hawksbill turtles."
Hawksbill turtles, which are native to Singapore, lay their eggs on sandy beaches. Their nests have been spotted in places such as East Coast Park and Sentosa.
According to the National Parks Board (NParks), a female can lay up to 200 eggs at a time and these usually hatch after two months.
Between January 2017 and October this year, there were 210 hawksbill turtle sightings in Singapore, based on data from NParks.
Recalling last Thursday's encounter, Mr Goh said: "It was the first time I'd experienced something like that first-hand.
"I had the chance to see and touch them. It's a different feeling. I was just overwhelmed by the experience."