Ricardo Tapilatu, a researcher and professor who channeled his passion for the marine environment into studying and protecting the critically endangered western Pacific leatherback sea turtle and its nesting grounds in West Papua, Indonesia, passed away on June 24 during a research expedition. He was 55.
Over a career that spanned decades, he brought a tireless enthusiasm and energy to all he did, including inspiring, mentoring, and educating future generations of marine scientists and conservationists from all walks of life.
Tapilatu was most recently a professor of marine biology at the University of Papua’s Research Center for Pacific Marine Resources; he also earned a 2018 Pew marine fellowship.
“Riki lived his passion for marine conservation in Indonesia, as a friend and a teacher, even until his last breath,” said 2017 Pew marine fellow Raymond Jakub, who is also the senior manager for data and fisheries at Rare Indonesia. “His dedication to inspiring more conservation practitioners through his energetic and mirthful teaching was outstanding. He set a meaningful course for us all to follow.”
During his time as a Pew marine fellow, Tapilatu investigated the effects of climate change on western Pacific leatherback sea turtles—a subpopulation of the world’s largest turtle species—in Bird’s Head Seascape, an epicenter of marine biodiversity in West Papua. The northern coast of the Bird’s Head Seascape is the last significant nesting area for the giant reptiles. These turtles have suffered steep population declines in recent decades, and research indicates that warming beach temperatures and sea-level rise may hinder their ability to successfully reproduce. To gain more insight into the issue, Tapilatu launched a project to explore the relationship between incubation temperatures, hatching success, and sex ratios to determine how climate change is affecting global leatherback populations.
His research informed more effective science-based management of Pacific leatherback sea turtles in Indonesia and throughout Southeast Asia and the Indo-Pacific. And during his career, he contributed significantly to the body of scientific literature that underpins scientists’ global understanding of the species and how to conserve it.
During his time as a Pew marine fellow, Tapilatu also established an outreach and education program, which continues to operate, to involve local community members in the long-term ecological monitoring and conservation of nesting beaches.
Tapilatu’s warm smile, infectious laugh, and easygoing manner, along with his commitment to his research, students, and conservation work, were an inspiration to the Pew marine fellows community and countless others.
“I feel his loss deeply, because of the respect I had developed for him and the times we enjoyed together, and professionally because of the superb work he was doing for leatherback turtles along the Bird’s Head coast,” said Rodney V. Salm, a colleague and friend of Tapilatu’s who is an emeritus adviser to The Nature Conservancy’s Pacific Division Marine Program.
As the Pew marine fellows community mourns Tapilatu’s passing, his legacy reminds us of the importance of supporting researchers working to inform more effective conservation of the global ocean and the diverse array of life that calls it home.
Nathan Fedrizzi is a principal associate with the Pew Fellows Program in Marine Conservation.