rifles, drive away the unarmed
turtle-protection team, killing the turtles, which regularly
emerge from the sea to lay their eggs on the beach.
"It's a very cruel death,"
said Mario Espinoza Amaro, a member of the team. "They cry,
shriek like the squawking of birds and bleed to death."
Turtles and especially their
eggs are highly prized in Mexico. San Valentin officials
estimate that only around 40 percent of the eggs escape
poachers.
According to AP, although many
programs to protect sea turtles and their eggs are in place
in the country, they have been unable to stop the gangs.
"It is difficult to get to San Valentin beach because of
the presence of armed people who, in addition to committing
other crimes such as drug trafficking, set themselves to
preying on the turtles and their eggs," said Miguel Angel
Calzada Adame, who represents the federal environmental
prosecutor's office for Guerrero state (AP/CNN.com, Jan.
20).
Copyright, National Journal
Group, 2004
