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TURTLES

Across the Coral Triangle, entire populations of marine turtles are being wiped out. What will it take to bring them back?

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Green turtle

Chelonia mydas

!! ENDANGERED

Hawksbill

Eretmochelys imbricata

!!! CRITICALLY

ENDANGERED

Olive ridley

Lepdochelys olivacea

!! ENDANGERED

Loggerhead

Caretta caretta

!! ENDANGERED

Leatherback

Dermochelys coriacea

!!! CRITICALLY

ENDANGERED

Flatback

Natator depressus

DATA DEFICIENT

Deadly threats at every life stage

Because of dramatic declines in nesting turtles in the last two decades, leatherback and loggerhead marine turtles are at risk of vanishing from the Pacifi c Ocean. In the Coral Triangle, several factors threaten all turtle species:

• Illegal trade and direct consumption (meat, eggs, shell, leather, curios)

• Bycatch (trawlers, longlines, gill nets)

• Habitat destruction and alteration (coastal tourism, industrial development)

• Pollution

• Disease

• Climate change

At sea, longline fi shing boats are not only pulling out fi sh catches but also thousands of turtles, dead or dying. Today, as few as 2,300 adult nesting leatherback females are estimated to remain across the entire Pacifi c Ocean—hardly enough to sustain the species into the future. In Indonesia alone, it is estimated that as many as 7,700 turtles are killed every year from accidental catch in shrimp trawls and tuna long lines.

A lifetime of great journeys

Marine turtles can undertake migrations of up to12,000 km, but unfailingly come back to the exact same beach where they were born decades ago. For example, the leatherback and loggerhead turtles travel across the entire Pacifi c Ocean between feeding and nesting grounds—a journey that is more than one-third of the way around the world.

Hatchlings

Lost years(5–20 years)

Developmental migration

(30–50 years)

Coastal shallow water foraging(immature and adult turtles)

Adults migrate to mating areas

Mating areas(shallow waters)

Breeding migration at

2–8 years

Adult females return to

foraging areas

Mating areasMating areas(shallow waters)

(30–50 years)

Hatchlings

With six of the world’s seven marine turtle species navigating the Coral Triangle, WWF is rallying support from businesses, governments and communities for a new rescue plan to save them.

What makes turtles so special?

Turtles are a fundamental link in the

Coral Triangle’s fragile ecosystems.

For example, turtles help to maintain

the health of seagrass beds and coral

reefs which are home to commercially–

valuable species such as shrimp,

lobster, and countless other species.

Not only do turtles have major cultural,

traditional, and social signifi cance, they

also draw visitors from around the world.

The Coral Triangle hosts breathtaking

sites that are visited by turtles and

tourists alike, such as Tubbataha Reef

in the Western Philippines, Sipadan

Island in Eastern Malaysia, Bunaken in

Indonesia, and the Solomon Islands.

For local residents, the fl ow of visitors

who come to admire turtles is a vital

source of income.

T H E C O R A L T R I A N G L E —the nursery of the seas—is the most diverse marine region on the planet, covering 6 million km2 of ocean across six countries in the Indo-Pacifi c region. It is home to 3000 species of reef fi sh and commercially-valuable species such as tuna, whales, dolphins, rays, sharks, and six of the seven known species of marine turtles.

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Nesting on beach

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Decreasing numbers of mean number of daily nesting turtles on Sangalaki Island, East Borneo

Mean daily nesting turtles

250

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150

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50

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Saving marine turtles—more than just protecting a species

The benefi ts of saving marine turtles go far beyond simply protecting these remarkable species. Conservation efforts will make fi sheries more sustainable and provide benefi ts for small coastal communities. But to be effective, turtle conservation calls for protection of the full range of destinations visited by turtles during their life cycle—places such as beaches, seagrass meadows, coral reefs, open ocean, and migratory pathways that cover several countries. This is exactly what the WWF Coral Triangle Programme is striving to achieve through Marine Protected Areas and reduction of turtle bycatch in fi sheries.

www.panda.org/coraltriangle/turtles

For more information

Lida Pet-SoedeLeader

WWF Coral Triangle Programme Tel/Fax +62 361 730185 Email lpet@wallacea.wwf.or.id

WWF’s Coral Triangle Programme

WWF’s Coral Triangle Programme is focused on securing the health of the region’s natural resources and the millions of livelihoods that depend on it. We are working to ensure that proper environmental, political and socio-economic management is put in place towards:

• Building a sustainable live reef food fi sh trade

• Promoting sustainable tuna fi sheries

• Financing marine protected areas

• Protecting marine turtles and reducing their bycatch

• Reducing the impacts of climate change

Matheus HalimTurtle Strategy Leader

WWF Coral Triangle Programme Tel +62 21 576 1070Email mhalim@wwf.or.id

Objectives

• By 2020, 50 percent of turtle major nesting, foraging and inter-nesting habitats, and key migratory pathways for priority species in the Coral Triangle are protected.

• By 2020, turtle mortality due to bycatch of leatherbacks and green turtles in tuna longline, and coastal fi sheries near major nesting beaches, is reduced by at least 50 percent against 2008 levels.

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Printed in September 2009 on 100% recycled paper© 1986 Panda symbol WWF-World Wide Fund For Nature (Formerly World Wildlife Fund) ® “WWF” & “living planet” are Registered Trademarks