Sea Turtle Bycatch: Protecting Ancient Mariners from Fishing Gear

Sea turtles are accidentally caught in fishing gear globally, causing drowning, injury, and death to vulnerable populations of long-lived reptiles with slow reproductive rates.

Key Facts

An estimated 250,000 sea turtles are captured as bycatch annually in longline fisheries alone
Loggerhead and leatherback sea turtles are particularly vulnerable to longline bycatch
Turtle Excluder Devices (TEDs) in trawl nets reduce sea turtle capture by over 90%
Circle hooks, used instead of J-hooks in longline fisheries, reduce turtle bycatch significantly
Sea turtles caught in fishing gear and drowned represent a particularly distressing death for air-breathing animals

Welfare Considerations

Sea turtle bycatch combines acute individual welfare harms — drowning in nets, injury from hooks — with conservation consequences for species whose slow reproduction cannot withstand high mortality rates. The welfare tragedy is compounded by the availability of proven solutions: TEDs, circle hooks, and modified gear designs dramatically reduce turtle bycatch. The barrier is primarily adoption cost and enforcement, not technical feasibility. Consumer-driven demand for sustainable seafood creates market pressure that can accelerate adoption of turtle-safe fishing practices.

What You Can Do

Choose seafood from fisheries with documented TED use and turtle-safe fishing practices
Support organizations advocating for mandatory TED use and circle hook requirements
Advocate for fishing license conditions requiring turtle-safe gear in sea turtle habitat
Donate to sea turtle monitoring and rescue programs that respond to bycatch injuries
Back international fishing agreements that include sea turtle bycatch reduction requirements