Failaka Island fish traps: a menace for dwindling biodiversity?

As part of the Kuwait Turtle Conservation Project and following reports of from Kuwaiti KTCP team members that "there were turtles in the waters around Failaka Island", we ventured there on the weekend of November 6th in order to search for turtles on the island and to integrate our findings into the sea turtle research and conservation work, sponsored by TOTAL Foundation and TOTAL Kuwait and under the auspices of the Voluntary Work Centre Kuwait and the Scientific Centre of Kuwait.

Large mudfalts
Wih a desert interior and surrounded by large tidal mudflats, Failaka is not, as it turns out, a nesting stronghold for turtles. KTCP team members, mainly involved with turtle nesting areas on Qaru and Umm Al-Maradim islets in south Kuwait, toured the perimeter of the island looking for turtle tracks, old or new nests and any other possible evidence of turtle presence on the beaches. The found nothing, except for one possible old turtle nesting area, surprisingly situated next to the ferry dock. But Green (Chelonia mydas) and Hawksbill (Eretmochelys imbricata) turtles do come to the coastal shallows to forage and mate, but, sadly, it is there that they often perish, not due to any natural cause, but because they get trapped in a hadra.

Hadra - Coastal fishing trap
A hadra is a coastal fish trap, traditional to Kuwait and other Arabian Gulf countries. They comprise a barrier of reeds in the shallows; at the end of the barrier is an enclosure made of two parts, the larger called "Al Housh", and the smaller called "Al Ser", which lie at the limit of ebb tides. There are many hadras along the sea shore of Failaka Island, and, in past years, all along the shores of mainland Kuwait as well. During low tides, fishermen collect fish, which are trapped in the hadra.

KTCP members were told by locals that turtles often get caught in the hadras and are then harvested for food by fishermen, who are mostly unaware of these animals' worldwide protection status. This image shows the remains of some turtles on Failaka Island

Turtles, dolphins, rays & sharks caught in fish traps
KTCP members were told by locals that turtles often get caught in the hadras and are then harvested for food by fishermen, who are mostly unaware of these animals' worldwide protection status. Rays, sharks, seabirds and small dolphins - resident populations of Spinner dolphins (Stenella longirostris) and Indo-Pacific humpback dolphins (Sousa plumbea) seem to be part of the island's marine wildlife - often get caught in the hadras as well, dying a slow and purposeless death, only to be discarded as "useless" by the fishermen who are only interested in what are considered "edible fish".

Ecological disatsers
The habitat surrounding the island and Kuwait in general has suffered several recent major ecological disasters, such as the massive oil spills following the Gulf War of 1990, the fires of the oil wells set by invading Iraqi forces and, currently, the raw sewage crisis which began in September 2009 and is ongoing, with unknown consequences on the marine environment of the country.

Hadras banned by Kuwaiti government
Ten years ago, hadras were common all along the coastline of Kuwait but acknowledging the severe damage on marine wildlife the government banned them. Nowadays, special permits are needed to own a hadra and the population has been discouraged from using them. Very few are now used on the mainland, but Failaka Island and nearby Miskan are exempted from this law and KTCP team members encountered fifteen on Failaka and six on Miskan. Kuwait is a wealthy Gulf country where professional and recreational fishing are very popular, most of it is exercised sustainably, with the seventy government shrimp trawlers operating their nets using TEDs (Turtle Excluder Devices), true pioneers of this practice in the region.

With the marine environment under such stress in the Gulf and around Kuwait, it is hoped that the use of hadra or any other unsustainable fishing practice shall soon be abandoned; giving wildlife the chance it deserves to regenerate and survive despite the many dangers in the waters of the Gulf. Government and NGOs should cooperate and launch an awareness campaign as the first step in a plan to redress this situation.

Failaka Island lies twenty kilometres east of Kuwait City and fifty kilometres from the southern most tip of Iraq. It covers just twenty-four square kilometres and is triangular in shape. The island is flat, apart from a small hill thirty feet high in the western corner.

There is a small resort on the island, promoting Kuwaiti heritage and biodiversity in a very dedicated and professional way. The facility is run by Mr and Mrs Hartley on behalf of a member of the Royal family of Kuwait. Generous hospitality was offered to KTCP members who enthusiastically recommend it to anyone interested in a very high quality stay in Failaka.

Kuwait Turtle Conservation Project: P.O. Box 214383 Dubai, UAE. nancy@kuwaitturtles.com