World Turtle Day Facts!

Let's SHELEBRATE!

May 23^rd is International World Turtle Day. On this day we raise awareness of Turtles around the world and how we can help them to survive and thrive in the wild.

Here at SEA LIFE we have 3 different species of Turtle: The Loggerhead Turtle, the Green Sea Turtle, and the Broad-shelled Turtle.

Our 2 Loggerhead Turtles, are named Dave& Chong. Loggerhead Turtles get their name for their very large heads. They have powerful jaws which help them to crush hard-shelled food like clams and sea urchins.

Plugga is our radiant Green Sea Turtle. She came to us as a rescue turtle from Coffs Harbour, after being washed up on the beach with a damaged flipper. Green Sea Turtles are one of the largest species of turtle and are the only herbivores!

Our final turtle resident is called Ernie, the Broad-shelled Turtle. These turtles unlike sea turtles fold their necks side-ways under their shells.

FUN FACT: Turtles are known as the longest living animal in the animal kingdom and can be dated back to the time of the dinosaurs, long before crocodiles and snakes, which makes them pretty special!

There are 300 species of turtles found around the world, with 129 of those species being endangered. The reason Turtles are endangered is due to a few different reasons:

• Over collection for food, traditional medicines, or pets
• Loss of breeding beaches due to tourism
• Being caught in fishing nets – This is a huge problem for Loggerheads
• Mistaking plastic bags for food sources such as Jellyfish and algae. – Green Sea Turtles are suffering the most with a study conducted by the University of Tokyo finding 62% of Green Sea Turtles are consuming plastic.

Despite the glaring issues facing Turtles there is lots we can all do to help these beautiful creatures:

• Recycle and re-use single use plastic. Let’s keep the plastic out of the ocean.
• If you come across turtle eggs on your beach. Cover them up back up, so they remain safe under the sand and report the sighting to your local Wildlife conservation group.
• Participate in a local beach clean-up. Our very own SEA LIFE Trust hosts these events every year.

Turtles do not have vocal cords, so we need to be a voice for them! Let’s Shelebrate Plugga, Dave, Chong & Ernie by looking out for our Turtle friends!