Sea turtles face threats including bycatch entanglement, beach development, plastic ingestion, and climate-induced sex ratio changes, with both population and individual welfare implications.
Sea turtle welfare operates at multiple scales. Individual turtles entangled in fishing gear suffer drowning or severe injury. Turtles that ingest plastic bags develop buoyancy syndrome — an inability to dive caused by gas trapped in the gut — that causes chronic suffering and starvation. Beach development during nesting season disorients returning females and causes nest abandonment. The population-level welfare threat from climate-induced sex ratio feminisation threatens long-term viability. Turtle rescue and rehabilitation programmes address individual welfare, while bycatch reduction, beach protection, and climate action address systemic threats.