PROTECTING SEA TURTLES

GLOBALLY, SEA TURTLES ARE IN STEEP DECLINE. THEY RETURN TO NEST ON THE BEACH WHERE THEY WERE BORN. IF TOO MANY EGGS ARE HARVESTED OR TOO MANY TURTLES ARE KILLED BEFORE THEY MATURE, THE COLONY IS DESTROYED. MANY HISTORIC NESTING BEACHES ARE NOW EMPTY.

THE FWC'S PROGRAMS INCLUDE RECOVERY PLANNING, COORDINATION OF RESEARCH AND CONSERVATION EFFORTS, HABITAT PROTECTION AND EDUCATION.		BOAT DECALS AND CAR LICENSE TAGS SOLD BY THE FLORIDA FISH AND WILDLIFE CONSERVATION COMMISSION RAISE MONEY FOR SEA TURTLE RESEARCH, EDUCATION, AND CONSERVATION.
LOCAL ORDINANCES RESTRICT EXTERIOR LIGHTING DURING THE NESTING SEASON ON MANY FLORIDA NESTING BEACHES.
		CHOW TIME FOR CAPTIVE-REARED SEA TURTLE HATCHLINGS AT THE NATIONAL MARINE FISHERIES SERVICE LAB IN GALVESTON. NMFS PROGRAMS INCLUDE REARING OF HATCHLINGS FOR GEAR RESEARCH AND REMOTE TRACKING OF OFFSHORE MIGRATIONS. THE TURTLES ARE THEN RELEASED.
NMFS RESEARCH TO REDUCE DEATHS OF TURTLES ON LONGLINES. HERE AN EXPERIMENT SUGGESTS THAT BLUE DYED SQUID BAIT MAY BE AVOIDED BY TURTLES, WHILE TARGETED TUNA AND SWORDFISH CONTINUE TO BE CAUGHT.
		CHILDREN ALL OVER THE WORLD ARE LEARNING TO PROTECT SEA TURTLES AND THE NATURAL WORLD. VILLAGE CHILDREN IN TORTUGUERO, COSTA RICA, LEARN AS THEY HELP AMERICAN VOLUNTEERS WITH THE CARIBBEAN CONSERVATION CORPORATION PRESERVE THE LAST MAJOR GREEN TURTLE NESTING BEACH IN THE WESTERN HEMISPHERE.
FROM 1978-1993, OVER 20,000 KEMP'S RIDLEY EGGS WERE TRANSFERRED FROM RANCHO NUEVO TO PADRE ISLAND, TEXAS, WHERE THEY HATCHED AND RACED TO THE SURF. THEY WERE RECAPTURED, RAISED IN CAPTIVITY UNTIL THEY WERE BIGGER AND RELEASED, IN A TECHNIQUE CALLED HEADSTARTING. THE GOAL WAS TO RECREATE A SECOND NESTING COLONY. IN 1996, THE FIRST OF THESE TURTLES NESTED ON PADRE ISLAND. .		SEVERAL MORE HAVE NESTED SINCE, GIVING HOPE THAT THE EXPERIMENT WILL SUCCEED. NMFS AND THE US FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE WORK WITH THE GOVERNMENT OF MEXICO TO PROTECT THE KEMP'S RIDLEY NESTING COLONY AT RANCHO NUEVO. AFTER DECLINING NEARLY TO EXTINCTION, NUMBERS OF NESTING KEMP'S RIDLEYS HAVE BEGUN A SLIGHT RECOVERY. CURRENTLY, SEVERAL THOUSAND TURTLES PER YEAR NEST AT RANCHO NUEVO, STILL DOWN FROM AN ESTIMATED 40,000 IN 1947. HERE EGGS ARE SENT TO THE US FOR CAPTIVE REARING. SEVERAL HUNDRED TURTLES A YEAR ARE HATCHED IN CAPTIVITY FOR USE IN TRACKING AND FISHING GEAR RESEARCH, BEFORE BEING RELEASED

STATE AND FEDERAL PARKS AND REFUGES PROTECT NESTING BEACHES FROM MEXICO TO FLORIDA. THE ARCHIE CARR SEA TURTLE REFUGE IS THE FIRST FEDERAL WILDLIFE REFUGE ESTABLISHED TO PROTECT SEA TURTLE NESTING BEACHES. IT INCLUDES OVER 20 MILES OF BEACHES IN BREVARD AND INDIAN RIVER COUNTIES ON FLORIDA'S EAST COAST.

GLOBALLY, PROJECTS ARE UNDERWAY IN: Albania, Australia, Bangladesh, Barbados, Benin, Brazil, British Indian Ocean Territory, Cameron, Canada, Cayman Islands, Chile, China, Columbia, Congo, Costa Rica, Cuba, Cyprus, Ecuador, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, French Guiana, Gabon, Greece, Guatemala, Guinea Bissau, India, Indonesia, Italy, Ivory Coast, Japan, Liberia, Libya, Malaysia, Mauritania, Mexico, Morocco, Nicaragua, Oman, Palau, Panama, Peru, Philippines, Portugal, Senegal, Seychelles, Spain, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Turkey, United States, Uruguay, Venezuela, and Yemen.

 

 

 

 

HERE, A 2 YEAR OLD LOGGERHEAD EXITS A BOTTOM-OPENING TED. THE TEST TURTLES ARE RELEASED AFTER TESTING IS COMPLETE.

THE NATIONAL MARINE FISHERIES SERVICE SEA TURTLE LAB IN GALVESTON, TEXAS, DOES RESEARCH AIMED AT REDUCING THE ACCIDENTAL CAPTURE OF SEA TURTLES IN SHRIMP AND FISH TRAWLS. CAPTIVE-REARED TURTLES ARE USED TO TEST TURTLE EXCLUDER DEVICES, OR TEDS, THAT ALLOW TURTLES TO ESCAPE BEFORE DROWNING.