The iconic yet extremely rare Dugong or sea cow and Green and Hawksbill sea turtles and sharks are key flagship species for C3’s conservation campaigns. C3 is the sole NGO focused on conserving these species in Madagascar and has been doing so for 10 years. These species have sadly been overexploited by communities for food and have succumbed as bycatch in gillnets. C3 is the primary partner in Madagascar for several Indian Ocean assessments of megafauna mortality as bycatch in artisanal fisheries and results of studies have advanced global knowledge about this issue.

Communities are engaged in outreach and monitoring programmes and C3 successfully worked with traditional leaders to ensure zero take of dugongs and sea turtles in Nosy Hara Marine Park. We work with international research teams on better understanding the status of sharks and rays at our sites and are contributing to development of a National Strategy for their conservation.

We continue to monitor these populations and protect sea turtle nesting beaches across the remote north in conjunction with community volunteers and our Junior Ecoguards. Although rare, we are happy to note that dugongs are still reproducing in the north and have been spotted in aerial surveys, whereas they have become extinct from most other regions of the country. We have also identified hotspots where they regularly visit seagrass beds to feed and these have been highlighted for careful protection and monitoring.

To conserve dugongs, we work with the UNEP Global Environment Facility, Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund, and other donors. We work with Newcastle University, and Western Indian Ocean Marine Science Association to implement fisheries research and management.