About Peter Dutton in Malaysia. Dutton, head of NOAA's marine turtle research program and a TOPP researcher, met with other scientists and officials from the Asian Development Bank in Terenganu, Malaysia, last week to work with Western Pacific nations that still have populations of leatherbacks -- Indonesia, Malaysia, Vanuatu, the Solomon Islands -- to develop a plan to save leatherbacks, the world's largest turtle, which is critically endangered. Ninety percent of leatherbacks have disappeared from the Pacific, due to humans who eat their eggs or accidentally catch them in nets or longlines.  Researchers estimate that 5,000 turtles remain in the Pacific, compared with about 90,000 in 1980.

In an interviews with Agence France Presse, which we found on Yahoo! News, and Reuters, which appeared on PlanetArk.com, Dutton said, "We are really aware that time is running out for the leatherbacks here so we have to come up with specific actions which are fundable and (this) needs to be done immediately."

Leatherbacks used to be a tourist attraction in Terengganu, in northern Malaysia, where thousands of female turtles laid eggs every year. Today, fewer than 10 nesting sites remain. 

Dutton suggested putting funding into establishing economic incentives for coastal communites to protect the nesting beaches, and for fishermen to be paid not to fish during turtle nesting season. He and other researchers also expressed concern that many nests are not producing viable hatchlings.

Just prior the meeting, Malaysian scientists said they were studying a $9 million plan to clone leatherbacks. Other researchers, including Dutton, doubted it was an effective strategy to save the leatherbacks. [posted by Jane Stevens, editor]