Marine Turtle Conservation and Welfare at Sea

Marine turtles face multiple threats at sea including bycatch entanglement, plastic ingestion, boat strikes, and climate change effects on nesting beaches — each with significant welfare implications.

Key Facts

All seven marine turtle species are threatened or endangered, facing pressure from human activities throughout their range.
Longline and gillnet bycatch kills an estimated 200,000 marine turtles annually.
Plastic ingestion causes intestinal blockage, buoyancy problems, and slow death in turtles throughout all ocean basins.
Boat propeller strikes are a leading cause of injury in coastal turtle populations, particularly in Florida and Mediterranean waters.
Climate change affects sand temperature on nesting beaches, skewing sex ratios of hatchlings toward females and threatening genetic diversity.

Welfare Considerations

Marine turtles experience welfare threats across their entire life cycle, from nesting beaches through juvenile pelagic phases to adult coastal habitats. The suffering associated with bycatch entanglement, plastic ingestion, and boat strikes involves prolonged, painful injury and death. Conservation interventions that reduce these threats simultaneously improve both population viability and individual animal welfare, making marine turtle welfare a compelling case for the alignment of conservation and welfare priorities.

What You Can Do

Support marine turtle conservation organizations including Sea Turtle Conservancy and Oceanic Society.
Reduce single-use plastic use to decrease ocean plastic pollution that injures turtles.
If boating in turtle habitat, operate at reduced speeds in shallow coastal areas during peak turtle seasons.
Choose seafood certified by schemes that require bycatch mitigation measures for turtle species.