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Watamu Marine National Park and Reserve is located in
Kenya ) , national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...
. Established in 1968, it was one of Kenya's first marine parks. It is located about north of
Mombasa Mombasa ( ; ) is a coastal city in southeastern Kenya along the Indian Ocean. It was the first capital of the British East Africa, before Nairobi was elevated to capital city status. It now serves as the capital of Mombasa County. The town is ...
, Kenya's second largest city. Its coral gardens are merely from the shore and are home to approximately 600 species of fish, 110 species of stony coral and countless invertebrates, crustaceans and molluscs. Water temperature varies from 20 degrees Celsius (June to November) to 30 degrees Celsius (December to May). The park was designated as a
biosphere reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or o ...
in 1979.


History

Watamu Marine National Park and Reserve was established in 1968 with
Malindi Marine National Park Malindi Marine National Park is located in the Indian Ocean, off the coast of Kenya. It is claimed to be oldest marine park in Africa. The park lies at Malindi, about 118 km north of Mombasa and is protected and administered by the Kenya W ...
and Reserve. They were established by the Kenyan government. Watamu Marine Park is now part of a UN recognised
World Biosphere Reserve The UNESCO World Network of Biosphere Reserves (WNBR) covers internationally designated protected areas, known as biosphere reserves, which are meant to demonstrate a balanced relationship between people and nature (e.g. encourage sustainable dev ...
.


Wildlife

The park's coral reefs form the physical and biological backbone of the area. With over 150 species of hard and soft corals, such as brain corals, fan corals and sponges, it provides for abundant nutrients for fish. The main park has over 500 species of fish and the reserve over 1000. There are also
whale shark The whale shark (''Rhincodon typus'') is a slow-moving, filter-feeding carpet shark and the largest known extant fish species. The largest confirmed individual had a length of .McClain CR, Balk MA, Benfield MC, Branch TA, Chen C, Cosgrove J, D ...
s,
manta ray Manta rays are large rays belonging to the genus ''Mobula'' (formerly its own genus ''Manta''). The larger species, '' M. birostris'', reaches in width, while the smaller, '' M. alfredi'', reaches . Both have triangular Pectoral fin#AnchPect ...
s, octopus and
barracuda A barracuda, or cuda for short, is a large, predatory, ray-finned fish known for its fearsome appearance and ferocious behaviour. The barracuda is a saltwater fish of the genus ''Sphyraena'', the only genus in the family Sphyraenidae, which was ...
as some of the larger species in the park. Watamu also has different species of turtles and a turtle watch program which has managed to secure the main park's beach as a 99% viable sea turtle nesting site for
endangered sea turtles Worldwide, hundreds of thousands of sea turtles a year are accidentally caught in shrimp trawl nets, on longline hooks and in fishing gill-nets. Sea turtles need to reach the surface to breathe, and therefore many drown once caught. Loggerhead an ...
. This beach is patrolled and monitored vigorously. The turtles nesting in Watamu include the
green Green is the color between cyan and yellow on the visible spectrum. It is evoked by light which has a dominant wavelength of roughly 495570 Nanometre, nm. In subtractive color systems, used in painting and color printing, it is created by ...
,
hawksbill The hawksbill sea turtle (''Eretmochelys imbricata'') is a critically endangered sea turtle belonging to the family Cheloniidae. It is the only extant species in the genus ''Eretmochelys''. The species has a global distribution, that is large ...
and
olive ridley turtle The olive ridley sea turtle (''Lepidochelys olivacea''), also known commonly as the Pacific ridley sea turtle, is a species of turtle in the family Cheloniidae. The species is the second-smallest and most abundant of all sea turtles found in th ...
s. The olive ridley species is rare but occasionally comes to the nesting site.
Leatherback turtle The leatherback sea turtle (''Dermochelys coriacea''), sometimes called the lute turtle or leathery turtle or simply the luth, is the largest of all living turtles and the heaviest non-crocodilian reptile, reaching lengths of up to and weights ...
s do not nest in Watamu or
Malindi Malindi is a town on Malindi Bay at the mouth of the Sabaki River, lying on the Indian Ocean coast of Kenya. It is 120 kilometres northeast of Mombasa. The population of Malindi was 119,859 as of the 2019 census. It is the largest urban centre ...
but they pass by through the nearby waters during their migration.


Conservation

Bleaching of the water in Watamu Marine Park, a marine protected area (MPA), occurred between 1997 and 1998. This was the single most important impact on the sea water that caused high levels of mortality to the coral reefs in
Malindi Malindi is a town on Malindi Bay at the mouth of the Sabaki River, lying on the Indian Ocean coast of Kenya. It is 120 kilometres northeast of Mombasa. The population of Malindi was 119,859 as of the 2019 census. It is the largest urban centre ...
and Watamu. Usually recovery is variable and depends on the reefs but Watamu was slower than average in recovery. Surveys showed that urbanization and coastal development, especially from tourism and agricultural sectors, contributed to increased degradation of the marine environment in the area. Removal of forests and natural vegetation for agriculture, removal of mangroves for building and fuel, and fishing to meet the demands of a growing urban population, all contributed to increased threats on the marine ecosystems of the MPA. This ecosystem includes of coral reefs, mangrove forests and sea grass beds. Land-use plans had to be incorporated into the MPA management plan. The inclusion took into consideration issues of coastal destruction of habitats for marine species including marine turtles and shorebirds, as well as improved enforcement of existing land-use statutes. The creek is an important spawning habitat for numerous fish species, an internationally significant wintering site for waders, and a feeding place for several kinds of sea turtles. In
Watamu Watamu is a small town located approximately 105 km north of Mombasa and about 15 km south of Malindi on the Indian Ocean coast of Kenya. It lies on a small headland, between the Blue Lagoon and Watamu Bay. Its main economic activities ...
and Malindi parks, a local marine conservation organisation seeks to protect marine life, especially sea turtles, by the means of a direct payment method program. The program pays local fishermen to tag and release sea turtles caught while fishing. For every turtle release, the fishermen are compensated for their time, efforts and potential damage to fishing gear, thus providing an incentive for releasing the animals instead of killing them. After the fishermen release the turtles, they notify Watamu Turtle Watch (WTW) volunteers who rush to the landing site. The volunteers then have an opportunity to measure and examine the animals as well as place ID tags on them before they are returned to freedom. This program has benefited the research of turtle nesting habits. Also, the center administering the program provides turtle rehabilitation for sick turtles, and has an adopt-a-turtle program, and studies the socio-economics of fishing communities. Fishermen are also allowed to fish in the protected reserve as long as they only take out the species of fish allowed by the park and use traditional methods of fishing. Consequently, there may be a trade-off between economic growth and environmental conservation.


References


Bibliography

* http://www.cia.gov * http://www.turtles.org * http://www.iucnredlist.org * http://www.seaturtle.org/mtn/archives/mtn105 * http://www.watamuturtles.com * "Environmental Biology of Fishes." Journal of Earth and Environmental Science Springer Netherlands. Volume 70. August 2004. * Protected Areas of the World: Afrotropical: A Review of National Systems By World Conservation Monitoring Centre, IUCN Commission on National Parks and Protected Areas, International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, British Petroleum Company Edition: illustrated Published by IUCN, 1992 , 384 pages {{authority control National parks of Kenya Biosphere reserves of Kenya Protected areas established in 1968 East African coral coast