LEATHERBACK SEA TURTLE HABITAT RESTORATION IN PUERTO RICO
ONGOING PROJECT SUMMARY
Once prevalent in almost every ocean, leatherback sea turtles (Dermochelys coriacea) are rapidly declining around the world.
"It is estimated that the global population has declined 40 percent over the past three generations [or approx. 40-50 years], while the number of nests for the Northwest Atlantic (NWA) sub-population, which includes the Caribbean, has decreased by 60 percent since the late 1990s'' (Northwest Atlantic Leatherback Working Group, 2018).
Major threats affecting leatherbacks across the world include:
- incidental capture in fishing gear
- harvest or predation of eggs and nesting females
- urban coastal development, including light pollution and coastal deforestation
- ocean pollution, marine debris and climate events such as hurricanes
Fortunately, at some sites, particularly in the Northern Caribbean, these regional and global declines are being counteracted through partnerships between local, national and international environmental organizations and agencies.
Puerto Rico provides an excellent example, where annual nest numbers range from 900 to 2,200 in strongholds of leatherback nesting activity.
Leatherback sea turtle crawling to the ocean after nesting in Playa Grande El Paraiso Natural Reserve in Dorado, Puerto Rico.©Karla M. Morales
Most important nesting sites for leatherback sea turtles in Puerto Rico.
Even so, leatherback rookeries in Puerto Rico are jeopardized due to degraded nesting habitats.
What we are doing to help leatherback sea turtles in Puerto Rico
The National Wildlife Refuge Association (NWRA), the Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources (PRDNER), and various community-based groups are working together to reduce major threats affecting leatherback nesting beaches around Puerto Rico with funding provided by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF).
The goal of this project is to ensure the availability of high quality nesting habitat for leatherback sea turtles in Puerto Rico by:
- restoring the nesting beaches that are most important for this species,
- reducing threats to their habitats, and
- promoting the protection of valuable nesting habitats that are currently not safeguarded.
Actions:
Cited reference
- NALWG, Northwest Atlantic Leatherback Working Group. 2018. Northwest Atlantic Leatherback Turtle (Dermochelys coriacea) Status Assessment (Bryan Wallace and Karen Eckert, Compilers and Editors). Conservation Science Partners and the Wider Caribbean Sea Turtle Conservation Network (WIDECAST). WIDECAST Technical Report No. 16. Godfrey, Illinois. 36 pp.
Acknowledgements
This project is funded by the National Fish and Wildife Foundation Grant #8006.19.066137. This StoryMap was made with the support of Carlos E. Diez, from the Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources. Thanks to photo providers: Karla M. Morales, Luis Crespo, Carlos Diez, Vida Marina, Yo Amo al Tinglar, Siete Quillas, Yafed Marrero, and all the community-based groups for documenting and sharing this valuable information. Thanks to our partners Chelonia, Investigación y Conservación de Tortugas Marinas and Amigos de las Tortugas Marinas (ATMAR) for assisting in project administration. Thanks to Dr. Michelle Schärer, Mark Musaus, Debbie Harwood, and Eden Taylor for revision and editions to the StoryMap, and to Dr. Bryan Wallace for technical advice.
Our thanks to these organizations for their support of the Leatherback sea turtle project in Puerto Rico.
The views in this StoryMap do not necessarily reflect those of the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.
