A wildlife display funded and commissioned by Canadian Green Fund and erected through the Sea Turtle Recovery Network (STRN), was recently mounted at the arrival baggage area of the Norman Manley International Airport. The display highlights endemic and endangered species of Jamaica, which need protection.

Placing the display at the airport is aimed at heightening the awareness of locals and visitors to Jamaica’s biological resources (plants and animals) and the need to protect them.

The STRN, a non-profit organisation, was founded in 1991 by a local Wider Caribbean Sean Turtle Network (WIDECAST) co-ordinator.

It was created in an attempt to redress the balance between the lack of resources to enforce regulations and to educate various stakeholders on the importance of protecting turtles and their habitat.

The Airport Authority of Jamaica (AAJ), has provided the space for the display at the Norman Manley International Airport free of cost for two years, while the Natural Resources Conservation Authority/National Environment and Planning Agency (NRCA/NEPA), will cover the maintenance cost of the display for five years. The STRN hopes to source further sponsorship for the display at the airport from persons in the tourism industry. The NRCA/NEPA has made a commitment for the display to be in the airport if a third year of sponsorship is not sourced in time.

Since its inception, the STRN has co-ordinated activities such as conflict resolution workshops, training sessions in beach survey techniques and track identification, and presentations on sea turtle biology and ecology.

The STRN aims to produce two displays featuring terrestrial and marine scenery. The terrestrial scenery is presently at the Norman Manley International Airport and it is hoped that a marine display will be placed at the Donald Sangster International Airport, Montego Bay later this year.

Sea turtles were once abundant in Jamaican waters and associated areas but the population of these animals has declined catastrophically. Four species of the sea turtle — green, hawksbill, leatherback and loggerhead — occur regularly and sometimes breed on Jamaican shores.