Bringing Colours Back To Our Lagoon

GHOST NET BRACELETS

Ghost nets are fishing nets that have been abandoned, lost, or discarded at sea, on beaches or in harbours. They are a major contributor to the bigger problem of ghost gear, which refers to all types of fishing gear, including nets, lines, traps, pots, and fish aggregating devices (FADs), that are no longer actively managed by fishers or fisheries.

Each year, ghost gear is responsible for trapping and killing a significant number of marine animals, such as sharks, rays, bony fish, sea turtles, dolphins, whales, crustaceans, and sea birds. They can cause further destruction by smothering coral reefs, devastating shorelines, and damaging boats. In Maldives the use of nets is prohibited but, due to the oceanic currents, big ghost nets can be found around the islands. This happened also here in Sangeli. The colleagues at the resort removed several nets from the ocean and released the entangled animals back into the ocean. The most colourful threads from the nets were cleaned and repurposed into 100% recycled plastic bracelets. These ghost net bracelets are sold to in-house guests for USD15, and the proceeds are used to fund the coral restoration project.

CROCHETED SOFT TOYS

• Support the Sangeli Muraka Project by adopting one of our handmade crocheted soft toys. (USD50 big size or USD25 small size/keychain) These toys are sustainably crocheted by a local artist in the shape of sea turtles and manta rays – two marine megafaunas regularly identified around Sangeli.
• The toys can serve as a souvenir or a gift for a loved one where the proceeds go into helping the very reefs these animals depend on for survival. A certificate of adoption is presented with each toy.

PROTECTING HAWKSBILL TURTLES

Five out of the seven species of sea turtles are found in the Maldives. Out of which the Hawksbill and the Green turtle are more commonly encountered by snorkelers and divers. Today, all these species are under threat of extinction due to several reasons. Plastic pollution, loss of nesting habitat and becoming bycatch in commercial fishing operations are some of the threats they face today. Moreover, sea turtles are extremely vulnerable towards discarded fishing nets, that entangle and kill these marine reptiles in a gruesome manner. With their decreasing numbers, it has become vital to conduct research on their population in the Maldives.

The Olive Ridley Project and Marine Savers are two organizations that works towards sea turtle research, rescue, and rehabilitation. The marine team of Sangeli island provide these organizations with data through photo identification. Photo ID is a non-invasive, sustainable way of tracking turtles. The facial scale pattern on each turtle is unique. Through this, we can identify them individually and over time learn much information about them such as growth rate, migration patterns, sustained injuries and healing progress, nesting frequency and much more. Sangeli marine team has been providing data to these organizations since 2021 in two key locations, Sangeli House Reef and Makunudhoo Reef further south in the atoll. Over the past two years we have identified a total of 42 sea turtles, out of which 15 were newly identified individuals to the database. Our in-house guests are encouraged to submit their own data photos from personal encounters, which are then processed to see whether it was sighted before or if it is a new individual. If it happens to be a new turtle to the database, the guests can name it. Those who identify new turtle gets a certificate of contribution from these organization and will also receive update on their turtle every time its re-sighted.

SEA TURTLE NESTING AND HATCHING

Atmosphere Hotels & Resorts has a Standard Operating Procedure to identify, monitor, handle, and release sea turtle hatchlings into the wild. First prepared and implemented at OBLU SELECT Sangeli, this procedure ensures that turtle nests and hatchings found at the resorts are protected, thus increasing the likelihood of the hatchlings surviving once they reach the ocean.

CLEAN UP

Prior to the event, the marine team identifies areas that are affected by discarded waste. This includes not just the reef of Sangeli island but the neighboring reefs that are visited during excursions. Regular clean ups are vital for the reef’s health in a long-term context. Corals are slow to grow, yet the slowest growing is often the most resilient. By cleaning the reef regularly, we allow these resistant corals to flourish and go back to how they were prior to being negatively affected by anthropogenic threats.

COMMUNITY OUTREACH

A large part of marine conservation is education. And as such, our in-house guests have the chance to learn all about the local marine life, either through the weekly presentations or one-on-one interactions with a marine biologist during excursions. However, we believe this knowledge should be shared beyond just Sangeli island. Our community outreach events are conducted to increase awareness among local school children, stakeholders, island councils and governing bodies about the current state of our marine environment. Such events help inspire the next generation of ocean guardians from the local islands. These outreach programs are done in partnership with other conservation organizations, that focus on specific areas of conservation such as sea turtles, manta rays, sharks, and sustainable fisheries.