Tourist wanted for feeding wristband to sea tutle in Similan Islands
The Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP) is searching for a tourist who fed a sea turtle a rubber wristband during a diving trip in Mu Ko Similan National Park, Phang Nga province.
The incident was shared on Facebook on Friday, 21 November, by Thai tourist Supawinee Tangphithak, who posted footage showing an unidentified tourist feeding a wristband to a turtle while diving near the Similan Islands.
In the video, the suspect handsำก the yellow rubber wristband to the turtle, which swallows it before swimming away.
Supawinee stated that the tour guide from the travel agency organising the diving trip had already informed all tourists not to touch, feed, or give anything to marine life. She emphasised that the incident was the result of the tourist’s personal behaviour and was not connected to the travel agency staff.
She further explained that she was unable to intervene at the time or apprehend the suspect, as she only noticed the wrongdoing after watching the video following the diving trip.
Supawinee urged the relevant authorities to contact the travel agency to identify the tourist and ensure they are brought to justice.
In response, Mu Ko Similan National Park and the DNP acted quickly to locate the sea turtle, which was taken to the Phuket Marine Biological Centre for examination and treatment. Officials were able to identify the turtle by distinctive features on its shell and front flipper.
In addition to searching for the turtle, authorities coordinated with the travel agency to identify the offending tourist and assured the public that the individual would face legal consequences.
Officials also called on all travel agencies to maintain an appropriate distance between tourists and marine life to prevent similar incidents in the future.
In a similar incident, a foreign man was caught violating Thai national park rules by feeding monkeys crisps at Monkey Bay in Krabi. A group of witnesses recorded the act and shared the video online, calling for the individual to be held accountable.
Officials promised to summon the foreign man for questioning and legal proceedings, although updates on the case have not yet been released to the public.
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