The capture of sea turtles and destruction of their nests, especially by fishermen along the Atlantic coast of Angola, continued placing the species under threat of extinction, Angola's state news agency Angop reported on Monday.

Baby sea turtle on a Costa Rican beach. [File photo]

The concern was expressed by Secretary General of the Mayombe Environmental Network, Rafael Neto who blamed some of the local fishermen for taking sea turtles as the "breadwinner" for their families by selling their meat, eggs and making their shells ornamental pieces.

However, the expert fell short of estimating the number of remaining sea turtles along Angola's coast. To save the sea turtles, Angolan environmentalists and ecologists have been conducting awareness campaigns among the communities living along the Atlantic coast of the African country, mainly in September to March or the period the female turtles come ashore to nest, Angop said.

The "Kitabanga (turtle conservation)" project in Angola, drafted by the Faculty of Science of Agostinho Neto University in Luanda in collaboration with Mayombe network, have launched campaigns to educate community residents along the coast on the danger of the extinction of the sea turtles.

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