Sea Turtle Bycatch
Would the Sea Turtles be Missed?
“Six of the seven sea turtle species are listed as vulnerable, endangered, or greatly endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List of threatened species (Roach).” These suffering sea turtle species are the following: Reen, Hawksbill, Kemp’s Ridley, Leatherback, Loggerhead, and Olive Ridley. All of these turtles are found in the waters off the coasts of the United States of America. The only species of sea turtle that is not in trouble, the Flatback sea turtle, is only found in Australian waters (“Sea”). It is hard to find the exact number of sea turtles since male sea turtles do not come back to the shore once they are hatched. However, the number has decreased by as much as eighty percent in the past twenty years; this is known from the amount of nests found on beaches (“Position”). Sea turtles face many struggles such as being harvested for consumption and illegal sea turtle shell trade. Loss of habitat, oil spills, and climate change are also key challenges that they come across. Yet, their prime problem is bycatch (“Threats”). ““Of all threats sea turtles face right now, bycatch is the most serious,” said Bryan Wallace, a marine biologist with Conservation International (Roach).” Bycatch is the incidental capture of species other than what fishers were intending to catch (“What is Bycatch”). Fishers, commercial and local, should be required to use circle hooks, TEDs (Turtle Excluder Devices), and special lights that do not attract sea turtles when fishing to reduce bycatch of sea turtles.
Though, making these easy switches seem like no big deal, the fishermen and some others tend to get pretty upset about it. Some people in the Mediterranean region of Europe eat sea turtle meat regularly and it would be an awfully large disappointment to them if they were not allowed to anymore. In addition, helping the sea turtles could cost big money for people in the fishing industry.
“Six of the seven sea turtle species are listed as vulnerable, endangered, or greatly endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List of threatened species (Roach).” These suffering sea turtle species are the following: Reen, Hawksbill, Kemp’s Ridley, Leatherback, Loggerhead, and Olive Ridley. All of these turtles are found in the waters off the coasts of the United States of America. The only species of sea turtle that is not in trouble, the Flatback sea turtle, is only found in Australian waters (“Sea”). It is hard to find the exact number of sea turtles since male sea turtles do not come back to the shore once they are hatched. However, the number has decreased by as much as eighty percent in the past twenty years; this is known from the amount of nests found on beaches (“Position”). Sea turtles face many struggles such as being harvested for consumption and illegal sea turtle shell trade. Loss of habitat, oil spills, and climate change are also key challenges that they come across. Yet, their prime problem is bycatch (“Threats”). ““Of all threats sea turtles face right now, bycatch is the most serious,” said Bryan Wallace, a marine biologist with Conservation International (Roach).” Bycatch is the incidental capture of species other than what fishers were intending to catch (“What is Bycatch”). Fishers, commercial and local, should be required to use circle hooks, TEDs (Turtle Excluder Devices), and special lights that do not attract sea turtles when fishing to reduce bycatch of sea turtles.
Though, making these easy switches seem like no big deal, the fishermen and some others tend to get pretty upset about it. Some people in the Mediterranean region of Europe eat sea turtle meat regularly and it would be an awfully large disappointment to them if they were not allowed to anymore. In addition, helping the sea turtles could cost big money for people in the fishing industry.
Cited: Byrne, Stephen. “Circle Hooks Vs. J -Hooks.” eHow. 2011. Web. 07 Nov 2011. “Fishing Technology Equipment: Turtle Excluder Device (TED)” Food and Agriculture Organization of the United States. 2011. Web. 04 Nov 2011. Kalman, Bobbie. "Helping Sea Turtles." Endangered Sea Turtles (2004): 30. Science Reference Center. Web. 4 Nov. 2011. “Preventative Measures.” EuroTurtle. 2006. Web. 11/26/11. “Threats to Sea Turtle Survival.” Sea Turtle Conservatory. 2011. Web. 18 Nov 2011. “What is Bycatch?” World Wildlife Fund Global. 2011. Web. 17 Nov 2011. “Why Care About Sea Turtles?” Sea Turtle Conservatory. 2011. Web. 03 Nov 2011.