ACTION items for 2010!


Stop the Drowning of Loggerhead Sea Turtles in the Gulf of Mexico

Our collective Action closed the deadly Bottom Longline Fishery last year, but now the US Fisheries Service is proposing to re-open it. The horrible drowning deaths of loggerhead sea turtles on longline hooks in the Gulf of Mexico could being again, even as their nesting populations continue a major decline.

NOAA Proposes MORE Loggerhead Deaths
They will accept 1,152 loggerhead incidental takes and 631 dead loggerheads over the next three years, but we will not!


WE HAVE UNTIL MARCH 1 TO SUBMIT OUR COMMENTS!       Click HERE to take action!


Help SAVE the Whooping Cranes!                                                 

Whooping cranes are majestic, endangered creatures that migrate 2,400 miles to winter in Texas coastal marshes. But irresponsible industrial and agricultural water withdrawals are draining the marshes and wrecking their habitat. As a result, nearly 10 percent of the 270 remaining birds died just in 2008. And the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service predicts another die-off this season.   Click HERE to sign Petition.

donations needed to finish our documentary film!


Thirty years ago, a film called "The Heartbreak Turtle" alerted the world that the smallest sea turtle species would soon be extinct if drastic measures weren't taken. The number of Kemp's Ridley nesters was less than 800. We have come a long way, and in 2009, the species is on the brink of a miraculous comeback.  But we need donations to help finish the documentary sequel.  We are about $10,000 short!!! The importance of the project is so great, to help show how far we have some since the beginning of the Kemp's ridley fight.  Anyone who has the means to donate $1000 or more will get a credit as a supporter/sponsor at the end of the film.  Help the turtles and get your name in lights (or on a movie). Contact Carole to make a donation. School classes and scout troops are also encouraged to raise money and donate!  Preview the film here.

he Sea Turtle Restoration Project has been making waves to protect these gentle giants for 20 years! Founded by Todd Steiner under the guidance of David Brower at the Earth Island Institute the organization first protected Nicaragua's sea turtles, and has grown to take on formidable foes and win. Celebrations are underway this week in San Diego, and tickets are available.  Link to webpage

30th intl sea turtle symposium- Goa, india

Every year, the International Sea Turtle Society holds its Annual Symposium on Sea Turtle Biology and Conservation. The 30th Annual symposium is coming to Goa, India (27-29 April 2010) and it is for the first time that the symposium is coming to the South Asian region.

This event is being jointly hosted and organized by sea turtle conservation groups and research organizations as well as institutions that work on marine environment issues across India and South Asia. Click here to see our partner organizations. Based on previous Annual Symposia of the ISTS, we are expecting up to 700 participants, from as many as 50 countries across the world. The ISTS Annual Symposium is truly unique, drawing an enormous number and diversity of people interested in these intriguing animals and their habitats.

Theme: The world of turtles

Sea turtles inhabit the land and the sea. They connect the shallow nearshore waters to the open sea, cold temperate to warm tropical waters. They migrate across ocean basins. And through several thousands of years, they have connected us ecologically and culturally to the sea. The thirtieth annual symposium on sea turtle biology and conservation will seek to explore these connections and focus on the world they live in. The world of coral reefs, seagrass meadows, open seas and sandy beaches. The world of people, living and working on the coast or at sea; of fishing cultures and livelihoods. All connected by sea turtles and by us.

In keeping with the theme of the symposium, the programme attempts to draw attention to marine and coastal habitats, fisheries and other livelihoods related issues, environmental impacts, and much, much more, within the context of sea turtle biology and conservation.  Read More

"private practice" star helps sea turtle fight go public

 

 

Actress Kate Walsh will be starring in some new print, online, TV, Web and radio spots to help raise awareness of endangered sea turtles, and what can be done to ensure their longtime survival. We need to raise awareness about sea turtles because most people don't even know that they're in trouble," said Walsh. If people know about what's actually happening in the water, it will encourage them to take action to help save sea turtles."

 

In summer 2009, Kate traveled with the conservation group Oceana to the U.S. Virgin Islands, where she witnessed leatherbacks nesting and hatching, swam with green sea turtles, and learned about the many threats sea turtles face.

 

The effort is being called "Get Sea Turtles Off the Hook", and focuses on raising awareness through public service announcements, and pressing Congress for changes that will protect all six species that swim in US waters. They are all listed as endangered or threatened species.  Check out the Oceana project web page, and view the PSA's,  adopt a turtle and contact your congressmen and the president. The more folks that chime in, the louder the call for sea turtle protections!    View PSA

 

Editorial: Texas Turtle Lady II Features in a New Book and "O, the Magazine

Years ago, Edward Humes, a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist, called me in Houston and asked what I had done and continued to do to save the Kemp's ridley sea turtles from extinction. After a long phone interview, weeks, months and years passed with no further contact. Frankly, I forgot all about it. A few weeks ago, I learned that Mr. Humes has published a book entitled Eco Barons: The Dreamers, Schemers and Millionaires Who Are Saving our Planet. Chapter 13 in the "Lone Wolves" section tells my story in "The Turtle Lady" chapter. (I'm either a dreamer or a schemer but not a millionaire.) Of course, the original turtle lady was the late Ila Loetscher of South Padre Island, Texas, who first endeared sea turtles to the hearts of the nation by appearing on Johnny Carson's television show. She traveled with a small green sea turtle complete with a tiny sombrero and serape and was a very big hit.

Shortly after learning about the book, the Oprah Magazine contacted me and has included a brief story in the April 2009 issue. Link to article in "O, the Oprah Magazine".

Both the book and the article imply that my work for sea turtles concluded years ago which is far from the truth. Vigilance and action for an endangered species never ends. Law enforcement in the Gulf of Mexico continues to be needed to make sure shrimp trawls have turtle excluder devices properly installed and working. The battle goes on to convince the state of Texas to declare a sanctuary in Texas waters to protect nesting Kemp's ridleys at the Padre Island National Seashore.

The campaign to convince the US Fish and Wildlife Service to consider the upper Texas coast as critical habitat for the Kemp's ridleys continues along with the need for renourishing of beaches following the damage done by Hurricane Ike. The publicity is great only if it benefits sea turtle conservation. - Carole Hoover Allen

Will the sea turtles return in spite of Hurricane Ike?

 

 

After Christmas and New Year's celebrations are past, we look toward spring.  For some of us, one of the most exciting events each year is the return of nesting sea turtles to the upper Texas coast.  Last year was especially memorable with the endangered Kemp's ridleys leaving six nests of eggs on Bolivar Peninsula, six more on Galveston Island and a total of 195 on the Texas coast breaking all previous records.

 

Things are different this winter.  Hurricane Ike was devastating not only to Texas residents but to the beaches where they lived.  Tons of sand were washed and blown away leaving hard clay behind.   Government agencies including Galveston County, Corps of Engineers, Texas General Land Office and Texas Parks and Wildlife Department are evaluating beaches and preparing to restore sand in order to attract tourists and residents, and, yes, the sea turtles.  Although some people may not care about the nestings, many do and have a number of vital questions.  Will the sea turtles return?  Will enough sand be moved in time and will it be the right kind of sand?  What about the debris that may still be floating about in the Gulf?  Yes, sea turtles have maneuvered in the Gulf of Mexico for centuries but did they have to face kitchen appliances and tons of lumber floating along with them?

 

Dr. Andre M. Landry, Jr., of Texas A&M University of Galveston points out the importance of renourishing beaches, whose integrity must provide favorable nesting habitat, a buffer from storm related events and a source of revenue through tourism and ecotourism to support communities like Galveston and Bolivar.

 

When marine debris is present, the shrimp industry is quick to ask for a waiver from the use of turtle excluder devices (TEDs) which makes sea turtles even more vulnerable to a shrimper who chooses to break the law by disabling the TED.  This is another hazard resulting from Hurricane Ike.

 

There is much to do before spring and the time for sea turtles to reappear.  The rehabilitation building and water supply to the sea turtle facility at the Galveston Laboratory of National Marine Fisheries Service was heavily damaged in the storm and needs immediate repair.  At present, injured or ill sea turtles are taken to the University of Texas Marine Science Institute at Port Aransas, already crowded with sea creatures of all kinds needing help.  Galveston needs its own facility repaired and standing ready for spring.

 

At this point, we can only hope that man, assisted by Mother Nature, will restore the sand that Hurricane Ike removed in time for the arrival of the sea turtles.  It has been a miracle that they visited our beaches in the past and it will be a greater one if they return this spring. 

 

Published by the Galveston County Daily News on January 3, 2009

 

Carole Allen, Gulf Office Director

Sea Turtle Restoration Project