Turtle Volunteer Conservation Project
Join our sea turtle volunteer conservation project in the Perhentian Islands and help protect turtles by night and snap photos of them by day.
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Why Choose This Project?
What sets us apart from other sea turtle conservation projects is that we get the best of both the social and environmental aspects in conservation – living among and working with the local community as we carry out our daytime and nocturnal activities. You will snorkel in the sea by day observing and taking photo IDs of foraging sea turtles. At night, you will patrol the nesting beach under a blanket of stars to protect the beach and collect nesting data on sea turtles.
Project Impact Reports – Read now!
Annual Impact Report 2023
Annual Impact Report 2022
Annual Impact Report 2021
Annual Impact Report 2020
Annual Impact Report 2019
Project Highlights
- Prices start from RM1,100 p/week
- Bring a friend and get a RM200 discount
- Start any Monday in April until Sept
- All meals inclusive
- 6-55 Nights
- Minimum Age - 15 years with parent permission letter.
About the Project
The Perhentian Turtle Project (PTP) was established by Fuze Ecoteer in 2015. The project works in close collaboration with the local community, stakeholders, Department of Fisheries (DOF) and Marine Parks Division. The turtle volunteer conservation project is currently based in two places: Kampung Pasir Hantu (Fisherman’s Village) on Perhentian Kecil and Pantai Tiga Ruang (Turtle Beach aka the nesting beach) on Perhentian Besar.
The islands are becoming increasingly popular for low budget tourism, which means more people, more tourist activities at the cost to the environment. PTP aims to conserve the sea turtle population of the Perhentian Island Marine Parks by monitoring them via photo ID and increasing awareness and engagement among the Perhentian Community and tourists. Learn more about the project and its impacts in 2019. Sea turtles live across the whole of Asia. To find out more about turtles in general and their distribution across Asia, please read this blog, Sea turtles in Asia.
Volunteer Project Details
Start Of The Week
Arrival on Monday | Briefing and Orientation | Water Confidence | Preparation for Turtle Beach Patrol at Tiga Ruang | Turtle Beach Patrol 3 nights
Midweek
Awareness campaign at Tiga Ruang | Rest & Free time | Turtle Beach Patrol | Back to the village | Kayaking and Turtle Photo ID survey
End of the Week
Small artwork project | Data analysis and review | Beach cleanup | Malay Dinner | Snorkel Tour
* Detailed itinerary will be provided after booking with us
Kayak and Turtle Photo ID surveys
We kayak to the main seagrass beds in the marine park which is situated near to Perhentian Island Resort. Once we arrive we search for grazing turtles. The scutes (scales) on the flippers and the side of a green turtle’s face are unique to each individual. Once a turtle is spotted, the snorkeler free-dives down to photograph the sea turtle. On the other hand, the person on the kayak records the number of people present around the turtle. They also help to ensure the safety of the snorkeler from passing boats. If new turtles are discovered, it is yours to name!
Why do this?
The information gathered is vital for conservation measures. It enables us to determine population numbers, identify hotspots where conservation efforts need to be focused and also movement patterns of the turtles. This data would also be useful for decision makers to design the Marine Park Management Plan.
Journal from Kayak Surveys
These surveys have produced this peered reviewed research article – Using photo identification to monitor the sea turtle population in the Perhentian islands.
Turtle Beach Patrol
What will I do?
Volunteers will help the team to collect non-flash photos of nesting sea turtles at beaches around the Perhentian Islands. The photos that you collect will help our researchers to study the sea turtle population in the Perhentian islands.
Moreover, volunteers and the team will be patrolling the nesting beach at night to prevent poachers from collecting sea turtles eggs. The patrols done are in addition to the patrols done by the Terengganu State Department of Fisheries staff to strengthen security of the nesting beaches against poachers.
What happens to the eggs?
The eggs are then collected and transferred to the project’s hatchery on the island. Better beach management such as the on-going turtle patrol has proven to reduce the natural and human threats on nesting beach.
Awareness Talk
Our team also goes around dive shops and resorts to conduct awareness talks to the public especially to tourists. Volunteers will get to learn about sea turtles conservation and will also be educating the public during one of these talks. Talk about doing work that makes an impact! Awareness talks are one of the ways to get information out to the public. An eco-educated tourist would do so much in conserving these magnificent creatures.
Volunteer interview
Read Clem Carroll’s Interview about her volunteering with the Perhentian Turtle project. Clem found the awareness talks very rewarding.
Beach Clean Up
At our projects, we commit to weekly beach clean-ups to ensure that the beach and consequently the ocean is clean and safe for marine life. Volunteers will help us during our beach clean-up. The trash will then be sorted according to recyclable and non recyclable items. Furthermore, data on the clean up will also be collected for further studies and given to Ocean Conservancy to create annual reports.
Malay Dinner
A big part of our project is the community. We live in the village and work with local community. Volunteers will get to have a taste of authentic Malay food at the house of one of the ladies of PILA i.e Perhentian Ladies of Association.
Fun fact: Fuze Ecoteer established the Perhentian Ladies of Association in 2012 for the housewives of Perhentian. It was established as a way for them to earn an income. It now proudly stands on its own and even has a cafe!
Starting Dates
Any Monday from 15th April 2024 until end of September 2024.
Malaysian Bookings
1 week RM1,100
2 Weeks RM2,000
3 Weeks RM2,700
4 Weeks RM3,400
All fees include return boat transfer, three meals per day, basic fan dormitory with shared bathroom, all activities. No marine park fees.
Bring a friend and save RM200 each!
International Bookings
1 week Not Available
2 weeks RM3,500 approx GBP600
3 weeks RM4,300 approx GBP740
4 weeks RM5,100 approx GBP880
All fees include return boat transfer, three meals per day, basic fan dormitory with shared bathroom, all activities included. No marine park fees.
Bring a friend and save RM200 each!
Fees Breakdown
Project Fees
Marketing and Admin
Food
Accommodation
Transport
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Included in Project Fees are, project staff wages and house rental and maintenance for 12 months, food for staff and interns, boats to tiga ruang, maintenance of nesting beach, research equipment etc
Food
Food in Perhentian is simple Malaysian dishes mixed with some Malaysian styled western foods like Burger Ramli, which are a must!
The volunteer programme package includes all daily meals:
Breakfast – Generally, for breakfast it’s simple toast, fruits or roti canai. (The Malaysian pancake a.k.a the Malaysian Flattened Croissant).
Lunch – Lunch is normally eaten out at local restaurants.
Dinner – Volunteers normally help to cook dinner with our project team and we eat together. Once a week, you will eat a delicious dinner when you go to the home of one of the villagers. This is the time for you to experience authentic Malay cooking and ask as many questions as you’d like.
Accommodation
Volunteers will stay at the Fuze Ecoteer Volunteer House, which has 3 sections/rooms with a communal toilet/ bathroom. Bedding and mosquito nets are provided. Safe drinking water and fans also provided.
Other Facilities
Wi-fi internet access is available at the project house. Shops are available in the village to purchase toiletries, snacks, drinks, veg, chicken and fruits. For laundry, hand wash/washing machine is available at the Ecoteer House. Paid laundry services is also available in the village. There are NO ATMs on the islands.
Check out our other projects!
Our Merchandises
You can support the Fuze Ecoteer projects and supported organisations by buying their merchandise. A minimum of 60% of your fee goes directly towards the conservation cause linked to that product. The other percentage is used for production costs.
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