Sri Lanka has a wealth of indigenous wildlife ranging from the elephant to the butterfly and the leopard to the giant turtle. It is these giant turtles that are being highlighted on the BBC's Saving Planet Earth series. To visit the turtles in Sri Lanka and in particular the Turtle Conservation Project one needs to travel south to Tangalle, perfectly placed for some time on the beach at either the Fortress or Amanwella or to the West coast where you'll find the Turtle Research Project. It is on the South Coast that the Turtle Conservation Project, with the help and involvement of the local community has managed to protect in situ hatching and increase awareness of the importance of conserving the costal ecosystem.

Based in Tangalle you can watch the turtles come ashore to lay their eggs and then the new hatchlings eventually return to the sea avoiding birds, waves and eventually the fisherman's net, with which they share the sea. These magnificent creatures are listed as protected by the World Conservation Union and it is estimated that 150,000 turtles drown in nets or a line caught every year but with the support of visitors to the area and the obvious hard work on the part of the Conservation Projects things are improving. A visit to this area of Sri Lanka is a perfect end to tour of the island and seeing these animals in their natural habitat a real treat.