Writing Homework

1

Frazier

Erin Frazier

Professor Elizabeth Phillips

Writing 121

23 July 2016

The Endangerment of the Sea Turtle

Sea turtles are some of the oldest species of animal on the planet. It is believed that they first arrived more than 100 million years ago (seeturtles.org). Starting as eggs that have been buried by their mothers on sandy beaches, baby turtles hatch and instinctively follow the horizon into the ocean where they will spend their entire lives. They are found in oceans all over the world and can travel thousands of miles during their lifetime. It is estimated that sea turtles can have lifespans as long as one hundred years or more (seeturtles.org). Sadly, most will not reach that old age. Negative human impact on the planet is having a major effect on sea turtles, with six of the seven species labeled as either threatened or critically endangered (seeturtles.org). Whether due to poaching, overfishing, garbage and pollution, beach development, destruction of reefs, or global warming, the sea turtle faces numerous human created dangers that threaten their existence.

In most countries, there are now laws protecting sea turtles from poaching. Unfortunately, these laws have not stopped the poaching and trading of turtle eggs, meat, and shells. In some cultures, turtle eggs are considered a delicacy, and some claim them to be an aphrodisiac. Desire for eggs place them in such high demand in some areas of the world that they are being removed from nests at unsustainable rates (Le Guem Lytle). Some cultures hunt mature sea turtles for their meat. Aguirre et al. found that along Baja California Sur, Mexico, the “sea turtle is consumed approximately 20, 000 times annually in just this single coastline” (142). The consumed sea turtles are often juveniles, meaning they did not live long enough to reproduce, which is causing a decline in their populations. Sea turtles are also poached for their shells, which are incorporated in art, jewelry, and souvenirs (Formia et al.). Until the demand for sea turtle products ends, these practices will continue and push the turtles closer to extinction. However, even if the intentionally harvesting and poaching of turtles stops, the turtles face other threats to their existence.

A growing concern for many marine biologists is the eight million tons of trash that enters the oceans every year (Parker). This poses many problems for the quality of our oceans and the marine life within them, and the sea turtle is no exception. Some species of sea turtle have a main diet of jellyfish, but they often mistake plastic bags for their prey. The result is that the turtles ingest the bags, which can cause an obstruction of the digestive tract and eventually lead to death (seeturtles.org).

Besides possibly ingesting the floating human trash, turtles are also at risk of becoming accidentally caught during commercial fishing practices that can lead to death. Commercial fishing of the oceans is happening at such an alarming rate that an international team of researchers fear that marine life will cease to exist in 2050 if overfishing practices continue (Black). With commercial fishing comes the increased potential for bycatch, which refers to everything that is caught by the fishing industry that is not the intended target (Lewison, Freeman, and Crowder, 221). It is estimated that 40% of marine life caught by the fishing industry is considered bycatch, which immediately gets discarded (seeturtle.org). This means that even when the intent is not to catch the turtles, they are still victims of the seafood industry and it’s demands. If the turtles are not killed during the process of being caught unintentionally as bycatch, they may be injured and then thrown overboard to fend for themselves. In addition, discarded fishing gear and garbage can also kill sea turtles when the turtles become entangled and drown. Of all fishing gear, “monofilament line appears to be the principal source of entanglement for sea turtles in U.S. waters” (conservturtles.org). This particular type of fishing line appears invisible to fish as well as turtles, which is why turtles don’t see it as they are swimming through it, resulting in entanglement.

Other pollutants besides trash and discarded fishing gear can be found in the oceans. Chemical pollutants from oil spills, fertilizer run off, and even sun block, can harm turtles and their habitat. Oil spills pose a particular problem to sea turtles because they can affect the turtles at any stage in their lives (conserveturtles.org). An oil spill might wash up onto a beach and affect eggs as well as nesting parents, or the spill can kill juvenile and mature turtles in the open ocean. The chemicals found in oil as well as fertilizer runoff can be directly ingested by the turtles, or indirectly ingested when the turtle eats another animal that has high levels of toxins. Exposure to such pollutants can lower sea turtles’ immune systems, causing other diseases that put them at risk (seeturtles.org). One such disease is Fibropapillomas, which causes tumors to grow on the soft parts of the turtles’ bodies that lead to death.

Sea turtles spend their entire lives at sea, with the only exceptions being their time on land as eggs and new hatchlings, and when females come on land to lay their eggs. Beach development by humans, such as the building of roads, hotels, houses, and restaurants, has played a large role in decreasing the areas for turtles to safely lay their eggs. Armoring structures such as sea walls are built to keep erosion from destroying development, but they also prevent the turtles from reaching upper beaches where they would typically build their nests. “False crawling” is the term used to describe when turtles return to the ocean without laying eggs, which happens when they find that their nesting grounds are no longer accessible (conserveturtles.org). If humans don’t stop overdeveloping beaches, most of the turtles nesting habitats could be permanently destroyed. Without the proper environment for the sea turtles to nest, they cannot give birth to the next generation, adding yet another factor to their declining populations.

Perhaps the greatest threat of all to the sea turtle is global warming. “Scientists predict that it could result in 20-30% of the Earth’s plant and animal species going extinct by 2050” (seeturtle.org). The impacts of global warming are similar to those of oil spills by not only affecting the turtles’ habitats, but also having negative impacts on all stages of the turtle’s life. The rising of ocean levels caused by ice melt off is diminishing nesting habitat, and increasing atmospheric temperatures are warming sand and causing eggs not to hatch. Warmer sand also has another effect of altering the sex of the babies, resulting in fewer males being born (seeturtles.org). Rising water temperatures caused by global warming are also having negative effects on coral reefs that provide home and food to some species of sea turtle. One such effect is coral bleaching, which occurs when corals become too warm, causing them to “expel the algae (zooxanthellae) living in their tissues causing the coral to turn completely white” and eventually die (“What is Coral Bleaching?”). Without coral formations, many species of fish and other marine life lose protective hatching areas, leaving some species of sea turtles with little to eat.

The sea turtle faces numerous man made obstacles that threaten the survival of their species. When the list is put together, it seems doubtful that they have a chance. Luckily, there are actions being taken to save them. While there have been laws put in place to protect them, public awareness might be the most powerful tool in saving a species. People need to be made aware of the destruction that poaching, overfishing, beach development, pollution, and global warming are having on sea turtles, and marine life in general. With awareness, humans might make serious and immediate changes so that the sea turtle, amongst many other species, won’t be pushed to extinction in the near future.

Works Cited

Conserveturtles.org. n.p. n.d. Web. 21 July 2016.

Aguirre, A. Alonso, et al. "Hazards associated with the consumption of sea turtle meat and eggs: a review for health care workers and the general public." EcoHealth 3.3 (2006): 141-153.

Black, Richard. “Only 50 Years Left for Sea Fish.” News.bbc.co.uk. BBC. 6 November 2006. Web. 21 July 2-16.

Formia, Angela, et al. "Sea turtle conservation along the Atlantic coast of Africa." Marine Turtle Newsletter 100.1 (2003): 33-37.

Le Guem Lytle, Claire. “Turtle Egg Poaching Legalized in Costa Rica: The Debate.”

Coastalcare.org. Santa Aguila Foundation. 15 July 2015. Web. 21 July 2016.

Lewison, Rebecca L., Sloan A. Freeman, and Larry B. Crowder. "Quantifying the effects of fisheries on threatened species: the impact of pelagic longlines on loggerhead and leatherback sea turtles." Ecology letters 7.3 (2004): 221-231.

Marks, Kathy, and Daniel Howden. "The world's rubbish dump: a garbage tip that stretches from Hawaii to Japan." The Independent 25 (2008): 2008.

“What is Coral Bleaching?” Oceanservice.noaa.gov. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 17 March 2016. Web. 22 July 2016.

Parker, Laura. “Eight Million Tons of Plastic Dumped in Ocean Every Year.”

News.nationalgeographic.com. National Geographic. 13 February 2015. Web. 21 July 2016.

Seeturtles.org. Web. 21 July 2016.