Turtle in the Derawan Archipelago. Borneo, Indonesia, July 2013.

Derawan, the turtle archipelago

# Borneo # Indonesia

  Borneo: Indonesia + Malaysia - July 2013

Dear English-speaking readers, this page is an automatic translation made from a post originally written in French. My apologies for any strange sentences and funny mistakes that may have been generated during the process. If you are reading French, click on the French flag below to access the original and correct text: 

Off the coast of Borneo, Indonesia, the island of Derawan and its archipelago are an incredible place to observe turtles.

Turtles everywhere

They sleep in the corals. They breathe on the surface, offshore between two waves, or near men under pontoons.

Turtles swim and parade in the waters of the Derawan Archipelago. There, they are called "penyu". It's everywhere!

Turtle in the Derawan Archipelago. Borneo, Indonesia, July 2013.
Turtle in the Derawan archipelago (Borneo, Indonesia, July 2013)
Turtle in the Derawan Archipelago. Borneo, Indonesia, July 2013.
Turtle in the Derawan archipelago (Borneo, Indonesia, July 2013)
Turtle in the Derawan Archipelago. Borneo, Indonesia, July 2013.
Turtle in the Derawan archipelago (Borneo, Indonesia, July 2013)
A crossbred turtle in Maratua. (Borneo, Indonesia, July 2013)
A crossbred turtle in Maratua. (Borneo, Indonesia, July 2013)

Underwater, we can see them taking astonished or haughty poses, when divers pass by with their noisy string of bubbles. They have on us the superiority of their long apneas.

If we disturb them, they go off with calm and determination. A few clawed flippers are enough to dig the distance.

Turtle in the Derawan Archipelago. Borneo, Indonesia, July 2013.

But most of the time, they ignore us superbly. Some of them stay asleep in the coral, their eyes half closed. Others are too busy grazing the reef with their beaks.

They're beautiful, these turtles. Some of them are really big. We come across them on almost every dive!

Turtle in the Derawan Archipelago. Borneo, Indonesia, July 2013.

Turtle in the Derawan Archipelago. Borneo, Indonesia, July 2013.

Laying

At night, we can also observe them on the sand, when they come to lay their eggs. Another "emotion" sequence...

The eggs are all round and all white, similar to ping-pong balls.

Turtle eggs. Derawan, Borneo, Indonesia. July 2009.

Turtle eggs. Derawan, Borneo, Indonesia. July 2009.

There is a small turtle nursery in Derawan, which is run by a local WWF office.

It already existed during my previous visit, in 2009. I had published an article on the subject, at the time (you will find links and additional information):

→ Small turtle will become big

The eggs laid on the beach are then dug up by the men in charge of the conservation program, then put back to hatch under the sand, but inside the protective enclosure of the nursery, where nothing will threaten them.

When the babies break the shell to get out, the WWF guys release them at night, on the beach. The tiny turtles then set off towards the sea and their destiny.

Tourists, foreigners and Indonesians alike, love to watch the laying of eggs or the release of babies.

In 2009, I could observe dozens and dozens of small turtles trotting valiantly on the sand and disappearing in the shadow of the waves.

In this month of July 2013, I was lucky enough to witness a spawning!

He is one of the dive guides of Derawan Dive Lodge where I am staying who warns me, one evening, that it is the moment... One of the guys of the WWF center alerted him on his cell phone. A female started to lay eggs on the sand, two steps away from the nursery.

In principle, all noise and bright lights should be avoided. But the instructions are far from being respected. The news has spread in the village, more and more people arrive and surround the unfortunate turtle... And many cannot resist the photo-souvenir, fingers raised in V, next to the exhausted turtle that has just laid more than a hundred eggs.

Sea turtle that came to lay eggs on the'island of Derawan. Borneo, Indonesia, July 2013.

Babies

The WWF guy also shows us, that evening, two baby turtles, from another clutch, that we will exceptionally put in the water.

Normally, the babies are all released together. I couldn't quite figure out if they were eggs that hatched before or after the others.

Anyway, he let us take one of these little creatures in our hands, with a soft shell, and put it on the wet sand...

Baby turtle. Derawan, Borneo, Indonesia. July 2013.

Baby turtle. Derawan, Borneo, Indonesia. July 2013.

Baby turtle. Derawan, Borneo, Indonesia. July 2013.

Baby turtle. Derawan, Borneo, Indonesia. July 2013.

Good luck, little turtle!!

👌

  Borneo: Indonesia + Malaysia - July 2013

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  1. Ah ça me rappelle tellement lorsque j’ai vu les tortues pour la première fois (dans le cadre de ma guérison de ma peur chronique de l’eau ;). Je cherchais des petits machins dans les algues et soudain ouf! Une tortue immense qui me regarde. Un moment très fort dans ma vie…
    Beautiful the little baby turtles, what a great opportunity you had! Beautiful photos, as always 🙂

    1. @L’autre Corinne : J’espère que, depuis tu es guérie de ta peur de l’eau… 😉
      Ce qui est fou, là-bas, c’est qu’on s’habitue carrément à voir des tortues, que l’on nage ou que l’on plonge… Pour finir, on n’est plus surpris du tout de les rencontrer, on trouve ça “normal”.

  2. Merci Corinne pour cet article , nous avons aussi beaucoup de tortues vertes à La Réunion du fait également , de l’élevage et de la protection de celles -ci . C’est un réel plaisir de les rencontrer en plongée sur les stations de nettoyage …encore quelques mois à patienter pour notre séjour a Rajat Ampat !!
    Sincerely
    Yves

    1. @Yves: Ça, c’est toujours très sympa, de rencontrer des tortues sous l’eau. Quant à la Réunion, ça me fait bien envie, aussi, j’avoue… 😉

      En tout cas, c’est à mon tour de t’envier, sachant que tu vas aller à Raja Ampat… Veinard !!!
      8)

  3. Qu’elle est mignonne cette petite tortue 🙂 On peut avoir la chance de voir ça n’importe quand ou il y a une période de l’année plus propice ? Déjà que Bornéo m’attire pas mal pour ses orangs-outans, mais si on y ajoute ces tortues, j’vais peut-être retourner en Indonésie plus tôt que prévu !!

    1. @Laurent: C’est vraiment attendrissant, ces bébés tortues… Je ne suis pas du tout une spécialiste des tortues. Je ne sais pas s’il y a des saisons pour la ponte. Mais j’ai pu voir des bébés tortues en différents endroits d’Indonésie. Je pense que tu devrais pouvoir trouver des réponses en farfouillant un peu sur Google… L’Indonésie est vraiment un archipel fascinant !!!
      🙄

  4. Tes photos sont absolument magnifiques ! On voit qu’il y a du bon matériel derrière 😉
    (Je viens de lire l’article sur le matériel que tu emporte en voyage … le résultat vaut la peine de s’encombrer avec “la techno superflue indispensable” 😉 !).

    J’ai eu également la chance de nager avec des tortues to the Galapagos, en snorkeling et en plongée, mais à l’époque je n’avais pas encore de bon matériel, et mes photos ne valent vraiment pas les tiennes !

    Je suis fascinée par leur façon de nager. Je trouve que ces tortues marines dégagent quelque chose de majestueux, et qu’elles ont l’air de voler (sous l’eau … ?!).

    Amandine d’A bag on the back

  5. It reminds me of these documentaries of my childhood on turtles who came to hide their eggs on the beaches.
    Elles sont vraiment bluffantes ces photos en tout cas. Tu utilises quel type d’appareil photo si je peux demander l’information?

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