With Brigitte, our volunteer, children played on educational games such as “the îlécolo”, the “world of cetaceans” the “life cycle of a green turtle”, etc…. Accompanied with the engaged youth in Service civic from the Municipality of Moorea-Maiao, they participated to a art-creation workshop for the preservation of our sea turtles and marine mammals … using recycling or natural materials. Another group played interactive games with the children on coral reefs and its fauna and flora.

Next group stayed with Matthieu, learning the coral reef ecosystem using interactive aquariums in which there was different kinds of animals….

Finally, the last one group was with Magali discovering the underwater trail created by our foundation in 2007. This day in favor of the oceans, permits us to invite more than 80 children and made them aware about the necessity to protect our oceans, for our next generations…

We would like to thank all our partners for their help and support to organize this event in favor of the oceans and the children : The Vilebrequin company, The Nature and Découvertes Foundation, the Pacsafe entity, the Moorea Dolphin Center, the Municipality of Moorea Maiao and the InterContinental Resort and Spa Moorea..

Thanks also to all our volunteer and team : Magali, Matthieu, Brigitte, Cher, Kalanie, Loïs, sans oublier la super équipe des engagés volontaires de la Commune Moorea : Luna, Luana, Jason, Ramssi, Chris, Vaheana, Vatea et Needy.

]]> https://www.temanaotemoana.org/en/10279/ Mon, 08 Jun 2015 23:54:26 +0000 http://www.temanaotemoana.org/?p=10279 In the afternoon of June 8th, Matthieu Petit has joined the team of PEW Charitable Trusts  at the “Maison de la Culture” in Tahiti to assist to the restitution of more than 340 pages, on the Marine Environment of the Austral Islands. This book was realised in one year and edited by the CRIOBE-IRCP (Insular Research Center and Observatory for the Environment – Coral reefs Institute). More than 30 experts have taken part of this work including our President Dr Cécile Gaspar and our marine biologist Matthieu Petit. To download the publication: click here

Then, he presented the project “Protect our oceans” conducted by the foundation during the 214-2015 school year thanks to the support of the PEW Charitable Trusts. This project gathered more than 25 classerooms from the Austral Islands, and 9 classerooms from Tahiti and Moorea (11 years old). At least, this project raised awareness of more than 700 children to the conservation of the oceans… This evening was also an opportunity to introduce the ” Protect of the oceans” toolkit that will be edited in 100 specimens and distibuted for free to all the schools of the project at the end of the month.

The end of the evening was dedicated to the beautiful documentary realised in the Austral Islands by National Geographic with the PEW  Charitable Trusts Foundation « Rapa : the spirit of the rahui ». An evening that raised awareness of more than 150 persons –

Click here to read the article from Tahiti Infos (only French).

In the early morning, we invited 3 classrooms to celebrate this world ocean day : two that participated to the « Protect our oceans » project and « Bula honu, follow the sea turtles of the Pacific » one’s.

In fact, more than the project held for the shool-year, another objective was to create a toolkit for the next one generations. But more than a pedagogic tool including a teacher guide, a brochure, 4 posters and a game, we would like to deliver a message… By using the words and productions of the children we found a way to go through…

That is why the winner Charter of Tubuai (Austral Islands) and the winner Poster  of Taharu’u, Parara (Tahiti) will be included in the toolkit that will be edited in 100 specimens and distributed for free to all participants, partners, ministries and elementary school at the end of the school year. This toolkit will be also available on our website.  

The third one classroom inivited to celebrate the oceans is the CM2 of Paopao Elementary school, Moorea. They came to present their work to the public and the other students, as part of the « Bula honu, follow the sea turtles of the Pacific » project conducted during the year.

In fact, to finalise the actions of the Observatory for the sea turtles and the marine mammals initiated in 2011, differents classrooms of French Polynesia, France, Samoa, Tonga, Fiji and New-Caledonia exchanged though a website during the all school year, following the travel of 6 green turtles equipped by satellite transmitters.

After having exchanged on this website : bulahonu.org, one of the classroom went in New Caledonia to encounter their partners.

This travel was conducted from May 7^th to May 14^th with our two educators : Magali and Charlotte. During their trip, the children have discovered different cultures, and the vision of the sea turtle that is similar than in French Polynesia : protect the sea turtles before they disappear.

When they arrived, the 3 classrooms were taken in charge by Magali, our animator that gathered them under the bog top placed at our Sea turtle Clinic, thanks to the InterContinental Resort and Spa Moorea. Vie, the director presented them the activities of the day before she congratulating them for their hard work and offering them many gifts thanks to the help of the Moorea Dolphin Center, the Polynésienne des eaux and The PEW Charitable Trusts). Then, children also enjoyed a special snack offered by the hotel before they started playing activities…

Gathered per group of 8, the children have presented and participated to 8 stands : one hosted  by students from the island of Tubuai, one hosted by the children othat went in New Caledonia.

With Henz and Vetea from the Polynésienne des eaux, children enjoyed to understand why we need to protect the water, and discover with Jonathan from the Municipality of Moorea Maiao, the Protected Marine Plan of the island (PGEM).

Guided by Matthieu, our marine biologist, the students discovered an underwater trail andaccompanied by Magali, Dimitri and Vie, the groups visited the  Sea Turtle Clinic, the dolphin lagoon managed by the Moorea Dolphin Center, and participated to various pedagogic activities on the environment and the animals we need to protect (the race of fe’e the octopus, the ilecolo, the adventures of a green turtle, the cetaceans game…). Finally, Donation from the PEW Charitable Trusts proposed them educative activities on the Marine Areas in French Polynesia.

But to celebrate this event, we wanted to propose activities for the locals and teenagers of the island that could not come usually to our facility. Thanks to the support of the Municipality of Moorea Maiao, a special shuttle was specially made available to the public of their island that would like to take part of our celebrating day. More than 30 persons came.

To finish the day, the two winner enjoyed a special gift to reward their hard work :

The classroom of Tubuai (Austral islands), thanks to the support of the PEW Charitable Trusts, has participaed to a special discovery day of the Marine Protected Plan of Moorea (PGEM) with Matthieu from te mana o te moana and have discovered the stingrays of our lagoon…

The classroom of CM2 from Papara, Tahiti has enjoyed a special encounter with a dolphin thanks to the  Moorea Dolphin Center….

<< Click here to read the Presse release of the events in favor of the ocean

A special event day that welcomed more than 125 persons (75 children and 50 adults and teenagers).

The picture was announced and displayed during the reception at United Nations Headquarters in New York City. Later this year, the winning photos will be shown at the World Underwater Imagery Festival in Marseille, France, and may also be as part of a traveling exhibit. The winning photos will be uploaded soon to the Ocean Project website.

The picture posted illustrated Papehau and the rehabilitated green sea turtle baby in Moorea Island, French Polynesia. In fact, Papehau, a 10 years old Tahitian girl is watching a rescued baby green sea turtle reaching out the lagoon. This is a very rare occasion while green sea turtles nesting in French Polynesia have been declining. This nest found in November 2014 was the only one seen in 10 years on Moorea Island…

<< Click here if you would like to see the other pictures of the Contest.

For this year, Yasmina and Coralie, intern and volunteer went on board to encounter 4 classrooms with children aged from 6 to 11 years old. Helped by gameboards, cuddly toys, memory game, posters…, booklets, they made the children learn about the marine animals such as sea turtles, marine mammals…. to help at a better understanding of why we need to protect them…

At least, 100 children participated to this morning celebrating the World Ocean Day…

Those days were also placed under the sign of the protection of the environment with a re appropriation of the ancestral navigation practices that are more environmentally-friendly.
Workshops on environmental protection were also offered to the public. As part of that, Vie Stabile from Te mana o te moana has proposed various educational games (booklets, boardgames, etc..) on sea turtles, marine mammals and the necessity to implement and the needs to respect the management plans, whatever if they are cultural (Rahui …) or scientific (marine protected areas .. .). A event day that reach more than 50 persons.
This project is supported by PEW the Pew Charitable Trusts.

<< Click here to get more information about the Hōkūleʻa project through the Press relase of National geographic 2014

The last clutch of sea turtle on the island of Moorea happened  in 2004, and only few failed attempts have been registered ever sine in 2006, 2008 and early in the year 2014.

A resident of motu Fareone (small island) called us on Saturday 15th of November 2014 to inform that they have found two baby turtles crawling around, partially  eaten by ants…

Our Veterinarian Dr Cécile GASPAR came right away on site and found 17 babies badly weakened, some eggs that were outside the nest, either partially hatched, either cracked or still unbroken…86 eggs had been laid in total…

At once the team handed out treatments on hatchlings. The cracked and unbroken eggs were buried again in a protected sandy area ensuring that the conditions were the same as the ones of the original nest; these eggs were monitored 24 hours a day. Natural hatching kept on going at a rate of 3 to 7 hatchlings every morning for 6 days.

In total, such an action generates the survival of 37 juvenile sea turtles thanks to one-week incubation more a close supervision.

The 53 surviving baby turtles were placed under observation into pools at the Turtle Clinic of Te Mana o te Moana in the vicinity of the InterContinental Moorea Resort and Spa. Since the beginning of the foundation 10 years ago, she Sea turtle Clinic has sheltered over 350 turtles in 10 years of existing…

For the 37 of them enough vigorous, it’s time to join in the open ocean with no delay…That’s what happened on the 26^th, from the reef in front of motu Fareone where the nest was found. They were released by the school children from the Paopao Elementary school of Moore. This action is as part of the educational program held for the 2014-2015 school year, and called “Bula honu, on the path of the marine turtles”. This project consists in having children from French Polynesia and South Pacific to exchange on the sea turtles thematic via a website, to create a charter and organize the journey to Fidji of the referent classeroom, to encounter their friends of the Pacific. We also had the honor of hosting Maud Fontenoy who came for this special occasion to support and contribute with her own Foundation to “Bula honu” educational program.

The 16 other turtles who have not been released yet remain under observation for few more weeks until they regain enough strength to be released…

Te Mana o te Moana likes to thank the inhabitants of motu Fareone for their reactive and efficient action once they found the nest, the volunteers that have been helping in a daily basis to the well-running of the clinic for 10 years now, and the last but not the least we greatly thanks to the InterContinental Resort and Spa Moorea as well as the Mahana Tours Society  that  provides us a boat everytime a turtle is ready and needs to return to the ocean Thanks also to the Ministry of the Environment …

Click here : to read the entire article on sea turtle babies release

Goals of the project held during the all school year 2013-2014 are to aim at a better understanding of our PGEM of Moorea (Management Plan for the Marine Areas), the rules applied, and to give a better knowledge of the marine fauna and flora. This project is conducted with the 7 elementary schools of Moorea (children from 9 to 11 years old).

As part of our missions in education, TE ME UM (Terres et Mers Ultras-Marines) program helps to conduce this project.Vie and Magali have conducted numerous animation sessions with classes (visit of an underwater trail, intercative and pedagogic activities onsite..) to get a better knowledge and so to better preserve the marine environment. In souvenir, every school children has got a booklet « Tohorä, baleine à bosse qui es-tu ? ».

To celebrate the World Ocean Day, the two classes which winned the contest have joined us to enjoy a special moment with a dolphin from Moorea Dolphin Center; playing activities with the City hall of Moorea Maiao and the foundation PGEM, and getting their gifts rewarding their hard work and enjoying a snack offered by the hôtel InterContinental Resort and Spa Moorea.

A huge congratulations to the :

– classe of CM2 of Mr Gabriel Lovato from Haapiti Elementay school who winned the First Prize and,

– the classe of CE1-CE2 from Mrs Alizée Hauariki who winned the second prize.

In partnership with the Mouvement Eco citoyen, which organized the event, a team of te mana o te moana was welcomed onboard the shuttle from Tahiti to Moorea (doing back and forth) to raise awareness of the users to the emblematic species of French Polynesia, explaining the different rules applied for both Marine mammals and sea turtles.

More than 100 students were also invited to participate to this crossing.

Ariti, the Loggerhead turtle relasead on May 24th, equipped with satellite tags on, continues her journey… After being on the south of Maiao island, she’s now still continue her travel to the westward after 21 days of follow-up. The satellite tagging and the release are possible thanks to the NOAA Agency and in partnership with the French Polynesia Direction of the Environment.

>> Click here for the “news” related to the release of Ariti.