TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Taiwan's highest-ranking marine official, Minister Kuan Bi-ling (管碧玲) of the Ocean Affairs Council (海洋委員會), led a ceremonial release of 10 rehabilitated protected sea turtles back into their natural habitat Monday (Jun 16) on the pristine shores of Magong Shili Beach (馬公嵵裡海灘) in Penghu (澎湖), an archipelago county in the Taiwan Strait. During the event, which coincided with World Sea Turtle Day, Kuan issued an impassioned call for greater public involvement in sea turtle conservation efforts as part of a broader initiative to establish Taiwan as what she termed a "sea turtle island" (海龜之島).
The release ceremony drew significant local attendance, including Penghu County Magistrate Chen Kuang-fu (陳光復), Ocean Conservation Administration (OCA, 海洋保育署) Director-General Lu Shiau-yun (陸曉筠), and a crowd of more than 100 students and teachers from nearby schools. Participants not only witnessed the emotional moment when the turtles returned to the sea but also engaged in interactive educational workshops designed to promote marine wildlife conservation awareness. In her address to attendees, Minister Kuan highlighted Taiwan's ecological significance, noting that the island nation serves as critical habitat for five of the world's seven recognized protected sea turtle species. She reported that conservation efforts last year resulted in the successful rescue of 21 endangered sea turtles, with Taiwan's coast guard units directly contributing to nine of these rescues.
Officials from the Penghu Fisheries Research Center (澎湖漁業生物研究中心), the specialized marine facility responsible for rehabilitating the turtles, provided details about the released animals. Among the 10 recovered turtles, seven were identified as Chelonia mydas (綠蠵龜), commonly known as green sea turtles, while the remaining three were olive ridley sea turtles (欖蠵龜), a smaller species recognized for its heart-shaped shell. Each of the released turtles had undergone extensive rehabilitation at the center after being rescued from various life-threatening situations, including injuries from fishing gear, boat strikes, or being stranded on beaches in weakened conditions.
The Penghu research facility has established itself as a critical marine conservation hub over nearly three decades of operation. Since its founding, the center has provided rehabilitation for an impressive 657 protected sea turtles, successfully returning 378 to their natural ocean habitat. The center currently houses 40 turtles at various stages of recovery and treatment. During the first half of 2025 alone, staff have admitted 11 new turtle patients, with the majority suffering from injuries sustained through accidental fishing net entanglements or being discovered stranded and debilitated on Taiwan's beaches. Officials deliberately scheduled Monday's emotional release ceremony to coincide with World Sea Turtle Day, symbolically celebrating both the individual turtles' recovery and global conservation efforts. ◼
