Conservationists working to protect sea turtles and their eggs in Nandayure, Guanacaste, are receiving death threats from poachers who plunder turtle eggs from the beach, known in Costa Rica as Hueveros.
Erick Lopez from a conservation group known as Pretoma which works in the Caletas Wildlife Refuge told the Spanish-language online newspaper, CR Hoy, that a conservationist working with his group has received serious death threats in recent days. Poachers allegedly told the conservationists that they should be “afraid of appearing dead on the beach.”
The conservationists, who work to protect turtle egg nests on the beaches of Caletas, Costa Oro, San Miguel and Corozalito, all in Nandayure, say they are tired of calling 911
“At some of the beaches we have identified the people [responsible] … we call 911 and don’t receive an answer, we visit the police station and they don’t have a vehicle. What we do is send more volunteers as reinforcements,” Lopez told CR Hoy
The conservationists said they fear meeting the same fate as environmentalist Jairo Mora, who worked to protect turtle nests in Moin, Limon before being killed by poachers.
The poachers are openly armed with machetes and firearms, according to the conservationists.
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