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Sea turtles come in different colours, shapes and sizes and are found in many parts of the world, from Mexico and Costa Rica in Central America to Turkey and Greece in the Mediterranean. Sea turtles have existed for millions of year but their survival is now being threatened.

Danger from pollution: The number of turtles worldwide has declined alarmingly. In 1942 a Mexican architect filmed approximately 42000 turtles at a site in Mexico. In 1995 only 1429 turtles nests were found in the same place. This drop in numbers is due to several causes. One is pollution; the world`s oceans and beaches have been seriously polluted by the use of chemicals and fertilizers. Plastic rubbish which has been dumped in the sea is also a danger when it is mistaken for food.

Breeding habits: Each year in the breeding season, the female sea turtle crawls from the sea at nigh to lay her eggs on the beach in a sandy nest. She lays about a hundred eggs the size of ping-pong balls, covers them with sand and then goes back to the sea. After about two months, the baby turtles emerge from the eggs. They are very tiny and struggle to reach the sea. During this time, the eggs and the new-born turtles are in danger of being eaten by birds, crabs and small animals like rats.

Threat of tourism: Tourism is another problem.

Many of the turtles nesting sites have been destoyed by the development of hotels in remote areas. Also, tourists can do damage by accidentally treading on the turtles nests and destroying the eggs. Baby turtles can be confused by lights from buildings and streets and prevented from finding the sea. They wander inland to be crushed by vehicles or to die from heat exhaustion in the sunlight. In addition, turtle eggs and turtle soup are now considered to be a delicacy for tourists so the stealing of turtle eggs and baby turtles has become more frequent.

What is being done: Volunteers are being used by wildlife organisations both to find out more about the sea turtles habits and to protect the baby turtles from animal and human predators. In particular, the volunteers mark and guard the nesting sites. Long-term measures are being planned to prevent the dumping of chemicals and toxic waste in the sea. However, in the sort term it is vitally important to protect the turtles which still exist.