Turtle Protection
Monitoring and protecting sea turtle nesting habitats along the Kilifi coast. Community rangers record nesting events and prevent poaching year-round along 270 km of coastline.
Sea turtles have swum Kenya's coastline for millions of years. Today, three species - the green turtle, hawksbill turtle, and loggerhead - nest along the Kilifi coast. All three are threatened.
Oceans Alive community rangers monitor nesting beaches year-round along 270 km of coastline, recording nesting events, tagging females, and protecting nests from poachers and disturbance. Data collected by the rangers feeds into Kenya's national turtle monitoring programme.
The programme is built on the understanding that communities who live alongside nesting turtles are the most effective guardians of those turtles. Community rangers are paid local people - often former poachers - who have chosen stewardship over exploitation because it supports their families and their identity.
Programme
Turtle Protection
Conservation · Programme 08
“We watched the turtles almost disappear. Now we watch them come back. That is the greatest change of our lifetime.”
- Community ranger, Kilifi coast
Connected Work
Related Programmes
Community Co-Management (LMMA)
Kenya's first LMMA. 120 km² under a formal management plan signed in 2022, placing communities at the centre of marine governance. A landmark in Kenyan marine governance history.
Kilifi BMU Network
Connecting and strengthening Beach Management Units across Kilifi County to ensure fishers' voices reach decision-makers at county and national level.
Research & Monitoring
Ecological baselines, fish biomass surveys, and coral cover assessments. The evidence base that underpins every programme and every policy recommendation OAF makes.
Support This Programme
Your donation directly funds conservation work on Kenya's coast.