Marine Turtle Bycatch: Welfare and Conservation Impact

Hundreds of thousands of sea turtles are accidentally caught in fishing gear each year, causing injury, drowning, and death in all seven species.

Key Facts

An estimated 250,000 sea turtles are caught as bycatch annually in longline fisheries alone
Loggerhead and leatherback turtles face particularly high bycatch mortality in pelagic longline fisheries
Turtles caught in nets frequently drown if unable to surface to breathe within minutes
Turtle Excluder Devices in shrimp trawls reduce turtle bycatch by over 97%
Post-release mortality in longline bycatch depends on hooking location and gear interaction duration

Welfare Considerations

Bycatch turtles experience severe welfare harm including physical injury from hooks and entanglement, oxygen deprivation leading to loss of consciousness, and in many cases death. Even turtles released alive may die of internal injuries or cold-stun syndrome following entanglement. Welfare reduction requires mandatory use of circle hooks and mackerel-type bait instead of J-hooks and squid in longline fisheries, mandatory Turtle Excluder Devices in trawl fisheries, and on-board training for handling and safely releasing incidentally caught turtles.

What You Can Do

Choose seafood certified by the Marine Stewardship Council or equivalent standards that address bycatch
Support organizations advocating for mandatory circle hook use in longline fisheries
Report stranded sea turtles with signs of fishing gear injury to wildlife rescue organizations
Advocate for expanded Turtle Excluder Device requirements globally
Engage with seafood retailers about their supplier bycatch reduction requirements