Tomorrow, 23 May, is World Turtle Day. Come and visit us and meet Yoshi, our resident loggerhead turtle, and learn more about the conservation work we do with turtles.
The importance of turtles
Turtles are basically dinosaurs. Think about that for a moment ... They have been on earth for way, way longer than we have – some 100-million years – and are thus extremely well adapted to life in the water.
Sadly, all seven species of sea turtle are currently threatened with extinction. This is largely due to habitat loss, as natural beaches, where turtles go to lay their eggs, are disturbed by human activities and development. Climate change is affecting water temperatures, which in turn affects the sexes of turtle hatchlings, and can affect the normal ratios of males and females being born. Turtles are also killed for food, medicine and the illegal trade of their shells.
By far their biggest threat is commercial fishing, and ending up as by-catch. According to the Wordwide Fund for Nature, hundreds of thousands of sea turtles are accidentally caught in shrimp trawl nets, on longline hooks and in fishing gillnets every year. "They become fisheries by-catch – unintended catch of non-target species. Sea turtles need to reach the surface to breathe and therefore many drown once caught. Incidental capture by fishing gear is the greatest threat to most sea turtles."
Helen Lockhart, communications and sustainability manager at the Two Oceans Aquarium, says only one in 1 000 sea turtle hatchlings will survive to adulthood.
"This is the reason why the Aquarium strives to rehabilitate and release stranded juvenile turtles that are brought to us by members of the public.
"Having washed up on our beaches cold and dehydrated, the turtles are given yet another chance of survival by the dedicated team of aquarists that nurses them back to health. Seeing these little guys returning to the ocean is a heart-warming moment."
Why should we care?
Sea turtles are part of two ecosystems: the beach or dune system, and the marine system. If sea turtles went extinct, both ecosystems would be negatively affected. This will have a knock-on effect for humans, as we look to these ecosystems for food and a variety of other activities (visit the Sea Turtle Conservancy's site for more on this).
In Oceana's report on the importance of sea turtles, the following is mentioned: "Major changes have occurred in the oceans because sea turtles have been virtually eliminated from many areas of the globe. As sea turtle populations decline, so does their ability to fulfil vital functions in ocean ecosystems."
Those functions include maintaining the health of sea-grass beds and coral reefs (turtles love to graze on sea grass). In turn, these benefit species that are commercially valuable to humans, like shrimp, lobster and tuna.
Beaches also benefit from turtle nesting – nutrients are delivered that normally don't reach these sandy areas. This helps vegetation growth and thus limits erosion.
How you can help
It's hard to care about turtles if you've never seen one. Visit the Two Oceans Aquarium to come and see what they are all about, and get a better understanding of their environment. If you can't get here, check out the live webcam on our home page, and if you're lucky, you'll see Yoshi the loggerhead turtle swimming by (she is quite the show-off)!
- Say no to single-use plastic bags. Turtles often mistake plastic bags for food and ingest them. The bags then block their stomachs and they starve to death
- Choose only green-listed seafood on the SASSI list or seafood products that carry the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) eco-label
- Obey the law and keep your vehicle off the beach
- Avoid plastic drinking straws. These items find their way into the ocean and kill many marine animals, including turtles
We're currently babysitting over 200 juvenile turtles at the Two Oceans Aquarium! Our goal is to release every single one of them into the wild once we have nursed them back to good health. This work would be impossible without your support – either by visiting us or making a donation to our conservation efforts.
Happy World Turtle Day!
