Ventura nonprofit Paso Pacifico takes on poachers with decoy sea turtle egg

An idea inspired a little by a TV series and a lot from a dozen or so years working on the ground in Nicaragua just may end up saving sea turtles.

Back in 2005, it was the sea turtles that nest on sandy beaches in Central America and clashes over poaching that pushed Sarah Otterstrom to start a nonprofit.

Her doctoral research had taken her to Nicaragua to research the impacts of fire on the dry tropical forest there. But as she counted trees, the conflict over turtle egg poaching heated up on the beaches.

“It was a complex thing,” Otterstrom said, describing the area’s extreme poverty, threatened sea turtle species and agencies charged with protecting the eggs.

Close to a decade later, the U.S. Agency for International Development put out a global call for innovative ways to fight the illegal wildlife trade.

Paso Pacifico, based in Ventura, took up the challenge. With a nod to the TV series “Breaking Bad,” a plan formed to design a decoy egg that could be used as a tracker.

The idea and design for the InvestEGGator came from Kim Williams-Guillen, a conservation scientist who was part of the nonprofit’s staff at the time and has continued working on the project.

If a manmade egg could allow the nest to be tracked, groups could discover the illegal trade routes.

“Any place without a community ranger, they have problems with nests being stolen,” said Otterstrom, 46, founder and executive director of Paso Pacifico.

A turtle can lay 100 to 120 eggs. At certain times of the year, those eggs can be sold for a couple of dollars each.

“We’re concerned about the international trade,” Otterstrom said. “If Nicaragua is supplying sea turtle eggs for other countries, that demand could really drive the trade to the extreme.”

The USAID Tech Challenge received 300 applications from 52 countries, according to the agency. From that list, Paso Pacifico with its decoy egg was chosen as one of 16 applicants to get a $10,000 grant and technical support.

A special-effects expert used paint, glue and sand to help with the look and the feel. David Bothman, an engineer who teaches at UC Santa Barbara, helped create some early prototypes.

It was his first foray into the world of wildlife conservation, seemed like an excellent goal and was a fun project.

“I was glad to see that it kept going,” he said.

After several iterations, the developers ended up with a 3D-printed egg with a small compartment for a battery and tracking device that can send a signal that bounces off cellphone towers.

In fall 2017, Paso Pacifico received an accelerator prize, which provided a $100,000 grant to help bring scale to the project.

“I think the big challenge is the cost,” Williams-Guillen said.

To make it work, a lot of decoy eggs would need to be deployed. Not all nests will be stolen, and not all the decoys will make it.

So that means making eggs affordable for conservation groups.

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Paso Pacifico got its start and still operates out of a bare-bones office on Front Street in Ventura – one with ocean views and a regular soundtrack of train whistles. Otterstrom moved to Ventura County with her husband, an emergency doctor, about 12 years ago.

“We started with small grants that were somewhat research-focused. That’s what we knew how to go after,” she said. “But we also included an element of education and community outreach.”

The plan was to not just focus on one species or one preserve, but to work on conservation on a larger scale, linking patches of land to create a wildlife corridor for the monkeys, parrots and other animals that live there.

Otterstrom, a mother of four, started working in Central America because of a personal connection. Her dad lives in Costa Rica and she went to college there.

“I had the opportunity to work as a tour guide leading naturalist tours to go birdwatching and tree climbing,” she said.

She started thinking more and more about conservation. After graduation, she left for California and UC Davis, where she studied ecology. Her doctoral research took her back to western Nicaragua and the area’s threatened dry tropical forests.

Over the years, she’s worked with farmers to grow sustainable crops and women creating an aquaculture farm, hired rangers for the forest and the beaches, and started programs for kids.

In the first couple of years, there was a $5,000 project. Now, Otterstrom said the nonprofit has a $1.2 million annual budget, largely from grants, and 45 employees. Five of the staff members are based in California and the 40 are in Nicaragua.

What started out as mostly science with a little community outreach also sort of flipped.

“There’s always science in our work,” she said. “But the emphasis now is on the community.”

Back in Ventura, the nonprofit is working with a local company called True Parts Manufacturing and a San Diego engineering firm to improve the decoy egg.

They’re working to get the price down and improve the design, including to get a longer-lasting battery inside it.

This summer, Otterstrom said testing is planned in five countries.

For more information about Paso Pacifico, visit http://pasopacifico.org.