Sarawak - Borneo - page 317

Talang-Satang National Park
Sarawak's first marine park ( www.sarawakforestry.com ) , established in 1999 to protect
four species of marine turtle, consists of the coastline and waters around four islands: the
two Pulau Satang , known as besar (big) and kecil (small), which are 16km west of the
Santubong Peninsula; and, 45km to the northwest, the two Pulau Talang-Talang , also
besar and kecil , situated 8km due north of Sematan Beach.
Once every four or five years, female marine turtles swim vast distances - sometimes
thousands of kilometres - to lay their eggs on the exact same beach where they them-
selves hatched. Of every 20 turtles that come ashore in Sarawak to lay eggs, 19 do so on a
beach in 19.4-sq-km Talang-Satang National Park. But of the 10,000 eggs a female turtle
may lay over the course of her life, which can last 100 years, only one in a thousand is
likely to survive into adulthood. To increase these odds, park staff patrol the beaches
every night during the egg-laying season (mainly June and July, with fewer in August and
a handful in April, May and September) and either transfer the eggs to guarded hatcheries
or post guards to watch over them in situ .
Snorkelling and diving are permitted but only within certain designated areas, and
divers must be accompanied by an approved guide.
PULAU SATANG
While the national park's conservation area is managed by Sarawak Forestry, the islands
themselves are the property of a family from Telaga Air - their 999-year lease, granted by
the last White Rajah, Charles Vyner Brooke, expires in the year 2945. About 100 cousins
now share ownership, but day-to-day management has devolved to Abol Hassan Johari, a
retired accountant who lives in Telaga Air and is much more interested in conservation
and research than in tourists. His family retains customary rights to the turtles' eggs but
these are 'sold' to the state government and the money donated to an orphanage.
The larger of the two islands, 1-sq-km Pulau Satang Besar , has a fine beach and a
small wooden shelter. Lucky overnight visitors can sometimes watch fragile eggs being
moved from the beach to a hatchery and, possibly, witness baby turtles being released into
the wild.
Abol's resolutely non-commercial approach to the island, and the exigencies of conser-
vation, mean that while you can theoretically overnight on Pulau Satang Besar, which is
14km northwest of Telaga Air, you probably can't as green turtles, hawksbill turtles, olive
ridley turtles, leatherback turtles, researchers and students (in that order) are given prior-
ity.