The mainstream U.S. media’s minimal coverage of the Caribbean mostly focuses on hurricanes, political turmoil, or tourism. But the Caribbean is also home to many of the world’s endangered animal populations. That includes sea turtles, who we humans have a responsibility to protect.
May 23 is World Turtle Day, which was created in 1990 by American Tortoise Rescue. The group’s website says the day is “a yearly observance to help people celebrate and protect turtles and tortoises and their disappearing habitats around the world.”
In 2022 we reported on a victory for activists in Puerto Rico, who were fighting to preserve beach access and a sea turtle habitat.
Today we’ll be looking at endeavors to protect these reptiles across the Caribbean, from a sea turtle sanctuary in St. Vincent and the Grenadines to rescue efforts on the Caribbean shores of Mexico.
Caribbean Matters is a weekly series from Daily Kos. If you are unfamiliar with the region, check out Caribbean Matters: Getting to know the countries of the Caribbean.
Before diving into today’s story, take a minute to enjoy the beauty and grace of these Caribbean turtles, photographed by Blue Water Divers in St. Martin and the British Virgin Islands.
May 23rd isn’t the only day dedicated to turtles, as June 16th is World Sea Turtle Day. Global Voices Editor Janine Mendes-Franco wrote this 2023 piece titled “A Caribbean perspective on World Sea Turtle Day.”
As a keystone species, turtles directly influence their environment in tangible ways that include everything from controlling the numbers of their prey to ensuring the health of seagrass beds and coral reefs. The pressing need for their preservation has also helped to boost the livelihoods of regional coastal communities, some of which have organised themselves into turtle-watching and protection groups. If a keystone species dies out or is removed from a habitat, the balance of that entire ecosystem can be thrown off, causing a negative ripple effect on dependent marine life.
The Caribbean welcomes various types of sea turtles each year during turtle nesting season, although some species can be found in Caribbean waters year-round. Five of the most common to the shores of Trinidad and Tobago — leatherbacks, hawksbills, loggerheads, olive ridleys and green turtles — run the gamut from being vulnerable to critically endangered. Yet, poaching continues to pose a serious threat, as does the increasing fragility of marine habitats.
This is of grave concern to Caribbean environmentalists, who are speaking out against high levels of plastic pollution plaguing the region, as well as the looming possibility of deep-sea mining.
One of the key organizations involved in many aspects of protecting and maintaining Caribbean sea turtles is the Wider Caribbean Sea Turtle Conservation Network, known as WIDECAST.
Welcome to the World of Caribbean Sea Turtles!
The Wider Caribbean Sea Turtle Conservation Network (WIDECAST) is committed to facilitating a regional capacity to ensure the recovery and sustainable management of depleted sea turtle populations. And so we ask ourselves: “What would a sustainably managed sea turtle population look like?” What would it look like to Government? To a fisher, a coastal community, a child? To a hotelier, a dive operator, a tourist? What would it “look like” to a reef, a seagrass bed, a sandy beach? Each of these entities, and many others, relies upon and/or benefits from the sea turtle population in measurable ways.
The WIDECAST website covers issues like Caribbean Legislation, Threats and Solutions, and has a Sea Turtle Nesting Beach Atlas.
Allow me to introduce you to cross-Caribbean turtle protection projects, which you can support—and perhaps even visit.
First: The Barbados Sea Turtle Project.
The Barbados Sea Turtle Project is based at the University of the West Indies (Cave Hill Campus). For more than 25 years, we have been involved in conservation of the endangered marine turtle species that forage around and nest on Barbados through research, education and public outreach as well as monitoring of nesting females, juveniles and hatchlings.
Our vision is to restore local marine turtle populations to levels at which they can fulfill their ecological roles, while still providing opportunities for sustainable use. Barbados is currently home to the second-largest hawksbill turtle nesting population in the Wider Caribbean, with up to 500 females nesting per year. Turtle nesting occurs on most of the beaches around the island, many of which are heavily developed with tourism infrastructure. This presents both challenges and opportunities for sea turtle conservation. Sea turtles are now not only an important component of the biodiversity of Barbados, but have become an integral part of the attraction of a holiday in Barbados. A visitor to Barbados has a high likelihood of seeing at least one nesting hawksbill turtle during any 2-week stay at any one of the hotels on the west and south coasts in the nesting season months of May-October.
This 25-minute video details the move away from harvesting turtles for food in Barbados, and the challenges still being faced.
The video by the Caribbean Broadcasting Corporation notes:
The Barbados sea turtle project rescues over 60,000 hatchlings every nesting season, as part of its mission to restore local marine turtle populations to levels at which they can fulfill their ecological roles.In this episode of In The Know, Director of The Barbados Sea Turtle Project Carla Daniel, lobbies for government to implement lighting legislation, shares what’s needed from hoteliers along the coastline and says more resources are needed for the Barbados Sea Turtle Project to continue their efforts, in protecting this critically endangered species.
Orton “Brother” King talks about the turtle sanctuary he founded on the island of Bequia in this four-minute video:
Old Hegg Turtle Sanctuary in St. Vincent & The Grenadines
Bequia is yet unspoiled and once you visit you will always want to return. It is less than nine square miles with a population of just over five thousand. We depend solely on the ocean for our livelihood (fishing and sailing) and for this reason we should care for it and treat its web of life with respect
At present I have 250 different sizes of hawksbill turtles ranging from three inches to 14 inches long, and I expect to get more hatchlings before the end of the year. I am getting the youth of our country involved by inviting our schools to visit so I can teach them the values of a healthy environment, which will be to their benefit in the future.
The Dutch island of St. Eustatius, shown in the following video from Devocean Pictures, is engaged in major turtle preservation and beach cleanup efforts:
The volcanic island of St. Eustatius, a.k.a. Statia, a jewel in the Dutch Caribbean, holds a special place in the hearts of nature lovers and marine biologists. On the shores of Zeelandia Beach, a timeless drama unfolds – the nesting and hatching of sea turtles. These magnificent creatures, survivors from the age of dinosaurs, weave a tale of resilience and wonder.
Statia boasts three main visitors to its nesting grounds: the green turtle, the hawksbill, and the occasional leatherback. Green turtles, named for the green colour of their fat, are the most frequent guests. Their graceful forms emerge from the ocean depths, drawn by an invisible tether to lay their eggs on the very beach where they hatched decades ago. Hawksbills, with their captivating patterned shells, arrive to deposit their clutches as well. Less frequent, are the leatherbacks – the largest sea turtles on Earth – their leathery carapaces a testament to their deep-sea journeys.
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On the Caribbean island of St. Eustatius, dedicated efforts are underway to tip the scales in favour of these vulnerable creatures. The St. Eustatius National Parks Foundation (STENAPA) plays a vital role. Nightly patrols monitor nesting beaches, deterring predators and relocating nests threatened by erosion. Educational programs raise awareness among locals and tourists, fostering a sense of responsibility towards these gentle giants. The nesting season varies per species. The sea turtle coordinator of STENAPA patrols the beaches, records turtle activities and coordinates the volunteers and conservation efforts from June to December.
I think we often forget that Mexico’s southeastern coastline is Caribbean. “Aurora Dawn,” a short and very moving 2020 documentary by filmmaker Emilio Alvarez, chronicles major sea turtle rescue efforts in the region.
The beaches of Tulum, Mexico are home to hundreds of nesting endangered sea turtles. Volunteers at the Xcacel Sea Turtle Camp help get thousands of sea turtles to the ocean safely. One volunteer, Aurora, gets her perspective changed from this experience. […]
Mexico is the nesting ground for at least 5 out of 7 sea turtle species worldwide. Between the months of May to September, in the popular Mexican vacation towns of Tulum and Cancun,, endangered turtles like the loggerhead and green turtles are setting up nests on the beach. Volunteers, like the one in our next film, Aurora (Dawn), patrol the nests to make sure every baby turtle makes it to safety. There sanctuary is one of the largest in the country, so come along to see what it takes to help protect one species at the brink of extinction.
I hope this has been an informative introduction to turtle preservation in the Caribbean, and that readers who are engaged in these efforts will share their experiences in the comments section below, which includes our weekly Caribbean News Roundup.
