They have an eight-year relationship.
A pawikan (sea turtle) called “Mikmik” refused to go back to the sea after staying with a fisherman from Tagbilaran City, Bohol, for nearly a decade, GMA News reports.
According to Vicente Igang, he found the sea turtle stuck on his fishing net years ago, and he decided to take it home and care for it like a pet.
Igang recently decided to give MikMik to the City Environment and Natural Resources Office (CENRO), who thought that it would be best to bring it back to its natural habitat.
Mikmik kept going back to the shore, which made Cenro believe that it doesn’t want to be separated from its owner.
Sea turtles are considered endangered and it is illegal to keep them in captivity.
According to the Business Mirror, “sightings of pawikan are becoming very rare, except for reports of carcasses having been discovered, or marine turtle shells having been seized from illegal-wildlife traders.”
Mikmik is now back with Igang, but only temporarily. CENRO will make arrangements to ensure that the sea turtle will be brought to a proper facility in the near future.
