Image Credit: www.fortmyersbeachfl.gov
Scientists are shocked.
The sheer amount of sea turtles found washed adore, dead, on the beaches of Armação dos Búzios, off the coast of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil has prompted researchers to take action.
Biologists and environmentalists performed geographical mapping and collected data from the beached turtles found between the second half of 2013 until the present, and the results are upsetting.
The top species affected in the area are loggerheads, leatherback, olive ridley sea turtles and even juvenile-aged maria sea turtles, which is extremely worrisome.
Image Credit: http://www.greenpeace.org/international
Most species found had no external cause of death. No fish bites, no evidence of shark attacks. However, plastic debris were found in the stomachs of some species and sea water in the lungs of others, leading to drowning.
Sea turtles have a pulmonary respiratory system, which means they must swim to the surface and catch their breath.
But why is this happening?
Fishermen and families who rely on the fishing industry to survive lack the environmental education to properly work in the area. They commonly use “gill nets”, which span an expanse of the ocean and prohibit turtles from rising to the surface the breathe.
Image Credit: http://www.fortmyersbeachfl.gov
Pair that with the large amount of floating garbage piles and the fishermen’s inability to interact with sea turtles (not recognizing a simple faint from death) and we’ve got a massive problem on our hands.
Marine turtles have crossed geological eras with little change in their morphology and are among some of the oldest animals on the planet. They can migrate hundreds or thousands of kilometers and are even able to detect the angle and intensity of Earth’s magnetic field.
Sea turtles are survivors.
That so many are dying, asphyxiated by garbage or thrown into the sea and drowned, is cause for alarm.
Research, monitoring and creating projects dedicated to adding environmental education to at-risk communities is a step in the right direction. It is up to the communities, fishermen and tourists to reverse this sad situation.
Read more on how sea turtles suffer collateral damage from fishing here.