By KIM ATIENZA
On “TV Patrol” recently, I talked about Turtle Islands and how marine life is protected there.
Little is known of this island chain, officially known as the Municipality of Turtle Islands.
Why is it called Turtle Islands?
Wikipedia describes it as a 5th class municipality in the province of Tawi-Tawi. It is actually very close to our neighbor, Malaysia.
According to the 2015 census, it has a population of 4,727 people.
The Islands are one of the world’s few remaining major nesting grounds for Green Sea Turtles.
In 1996, these islands were declared as Turtle Islands Heritage Protected Area by both the governments of the Philippines and Malaysia.
The move is one way to guarantee the continued existence of the green sea turtles and their nesting sites.
Baguan, an island protected for turtle nesting, and the smallest island, Sibaung, are uninhabited.
Wikipedia notes that access to the Turtle Islands is difficult, as there are no regular means of transportation to the area. This has kept the islands protected from turtle egg poachers.
There is a station for park rangers on the islands.
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TRIVIA PA MORE (Various Sources): Some words to live by in Batangas: Kampit means kutsilyo or knife. Kaon means sundo or to fetch. Lumiban means tumawid, or to cross a street.
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ATING ALAMIN: A snail can sleep for three years.
Elephants are the only animal that can’t jump.
A rhinoceros’ horn is made of hair.
Send your questions on anything and everything to Kuya Kim through my Twitter account @kuyakim_atienza using #AlaminKayKuyaKim.
