HOME | DD

Description
Snorkel - female loggerhead turtle.

Loggerhead Sea Turtles were once intensively hunted for their meat and eggs, along with their fat which was used in cosmetics and medication. The Loggerhead Sea Turtles were also killed for their shells, which are used to make items such as combs. As a result both subspecies are now internationally protected.
Today the main threat to the adult loggerheads lies in shrimp trawls and crab fishing nets, to which many loggerheads annually fall victim. Furthermore, adults are often injured by speedboat propellers and by swallowing fishing hooks or getting caught in nets. Internationally animal protection organizations take pains to monitor and protect the turtles' nesting grounds in Turkey, Greece, Bonaire and Costa Rica. The turtles can also be found around the Italian islands of Lampedusa and Linosa, off the coast of Sicily, and in Calabria, where it is particularly endangered. Furthermore, the turtles are known to nest on the beaches of the Northern part of Cyprus, especially Alagadi Beach.
Hatchlings require the travel from their nest to the ocean in order to build up strength for the journey ahead, so interfering by helping it to the ocean actually lowers their chances of survival.

Loggerhead turtle.
Caretta caretta
The National Aquarium, Plymouth.

Description
Snorkel - female loggerhead turtle.

Loggerhead Sea Turtles were once intensively hunted for their meat and eggs, along with their fat which was used in cosmetics and medication. The Loggerhead Sea Turtles were also killed for their shells, which are used to make items such as combs. As a result both subspecies are now internationally protected.
Today the main threat to the adult loggerheads lies in shrimp trawls and crab fishing nets, to which many loggerheads annually fall victim. Furthermore, adults are often injured by speedboat propellers and by swallowing fishing hooks or getting caught in nets. Internationally animal protection organizations take pains to monitor and protect the turtles' nesting grounds in Turkey, Greece, Bonaire and Costa Rica. The turtles can also be found around the Italian islands of Lampedusa and Linosa, off the coast of Sicily, and in Calabria, where it is particularly endangered. Furthermore, the turtles are known to nest on the beaches of the Northern part of Cyprus, especially Alagadi Beach.
Hatchlings require the travel from their nest to the ocean in order to build up strength for the journey ahead, so interfering by helping it to the ocean actually lowers their chances of survival.

Loggerhead turtle.
Caretta caretta
The National Aquarium, Plymouth.