Sea Turtle Welfare: Entanglement, Ingestion and Bycatch

Sea turtles face multiple human-caused welfare harms including fishing bycatch, plastic ingestion, boat strikes and beach disturbance, threatening all seven species globally.

Key Facts

All seven sea turtle species are threatened or endangered, with human activities being primary causes
An estimated 250,000 sea turtles are captured, injured or killed as bycatch annually
Sea turtles mistake plastic bags for jellyfish, leading to intestinal blockage and slow starvation
Fibropapillomatosis, a tumor disease linked to pollution, affects 30-70% of Hawaiian green turtles
Turtle Excluder Devices (TEDs) in shrimp trawls can reduce sea turtle bycatch by over 90%

Welfare Considerations

Sea turtles experience welfare harms across their entire life cycle as a consequence of human activity. Nesting beaches are disturbed by development and artificial lighting. Juveniles ingest plastic in open ocean gyres where debris accumulates. Adults are caught in fishing gear and drown or sustain propeller injuries from boat strikes. Fibropapillomatosis causes tumor growth that impairs vision, feeding and movement. These harms affect individual turtle welfare profoundly while also driving populations toward extinction. The welfare and conservation cases for protecting sea turtles are inseparable.

What You Can Do

Reduce single-use plastic consumption to address ocean plastic pollution affecting sea turtles
Choose sustainably caught shrimp certified as turtle-safe using Turtle Excluder Devices
Support sea turtle monitoring and nesting beach protection projects
Donate to marine conservation organizations working on sea turtle recovery