Save the turtles from 'filthy' gangs.

A provincial mayor has asked the federal government to send in the military after the local press reported that a heavily armed group has killed hundreds of endangered sea turtles near one of Mexico's most popular Pacific resorts.

In a front-page report in Reforma newspaper in mid-January, a gang in the state of Guerrero identified as Los Nejos--loosely translated as "the filthy ones"--was blamed for killing 500 sea turtles in the past three months to sell their meat and eggs on the Mexican black market.

Javier Rodriguez, mayor of the community of Petatlan which encompasses 70 kilometers of Pacific coastline, described Los Nejos as a band of horse-riding bandits who frequently invade local beaches with guns, AK-47 assault rifles and clubs.

He said these people shoot or bludgeon sea turtles to death, and often quarter them, as turtle fins, in particular, are valued items. According to Reforma, over 100 empty turtle shells could be counted along just a two-kilometer stretch of Petatlan's San Valentin Beach, a half-hour drive from the tourist hotspot of Zihuatenejo.

The high-caliber arms Los Nejos members possess and the fact that they also commit crimes, ranging from robbery to assault, in and around downtown Petatlan require intervention from the Army and the Attorney General's Office (PGR), according to Rodriguez. Petatlan's 2004 budget designates funds for increased security on nearby beaches, but the mayor said the town administration does not have the capacity to adequately protect the sea turtles on its own, especially on beaches not easily accessible by land.

"To act against these delinquents, we need the collaboration of the Mexican Army and the AFI [Federal Agency of Investigation within the PGR], since we don't have the power to do these kinds of searches," Reforma quoted Rodriguez as saying.

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Over the last century, human shoreline development, hunting, irresponsible fishing and pollution have caused sea turtle populations around the world to plummet. Of the dozens of sea turtle species that are believed to have existed, only eight remain today. Of those, seven species lay their eggs on Mexican beaches and three--the Green, Olive Ridley and Leatherback--lay eggs in and around Zihuatenejo.

--A.S.