The recognition was granted by Corpoguajira for the release of a channel turtle that was captured during its fishing task

The Board of Directors of Corpoguajira declared Vicente Fernández Morales as guardian of the Department's sea turtles, for leading the return of an adult channel turtle, approximately 150 kilos, a natural habitation, after being caught during their usual fishing activities.

The fact, recorded in various media (regional and national) happened in upper Guajira, on the beaches of Puerto Lopez (Uribia), during the month of april, "in the middle
of the day we realized that the turtle was trapped in the nets, four people tried to get it on the boat and we couldn't because of the weight and because the trammel nets broke; That is why we take it to the shore to be able to untangle it and return it to the sea”, explained Vicente Fernandez, who additionally indicated that in the liberation participated around 15 fishermen and locals.

During the recognition ceremony, Samuel Lanao Robles, Director of Corpoguajira highlighted and thanked the fishermen for this action, “We do a great acknowledgment to our
new guardian of the turtles and the group of fishermen for this heroic act that makes them a great example of conservation of our wildlife. This is one more sample of the awareness work that we carry out with the communities for the protection of this important species”.

The channel or leatherback turtle (Dermochelys coriacea), It is the largest of all sea turtles., can reach a length of 2,3 meters and a weight of more than 600 kilograms. It should be noted that the populations of sea turtles that frequent the department of La Guajira suffer strong pressure due to the extraction and consumption of their meat and the alteration of their feeding and nesting habitats., which are affected by the degradation of water quality due to excess nutrients and sediments, destructive fishing practices, boat propellers, coastal infrastructure works, hurricanes, invasion of alien species, Inter alia.