Kemp Ridely Turtle
...ey may now be the rarest of all sea turtles. Why has this happened? First of all, Shrimp nets are the biggest threat to the Kemp ridley turtle. On average between 500 to 5000 are sadly killed this way. “In 1987, the shrimping fleet around the Gulf of Mexico and south Atlantic caught an estimated 45,000 or more turtles, killing approximately 11,000” (Carr). In 1976 the two governments of Mexico and United States of America agreed to stop shrimp in the Mexican waters. But, the USA continued illegally using shrimp vessels in the Mexican waters (Wesiler). Many fishermen need a simple device called The Turtle Excluder Device (TED). This device has been around a while and has been very helpful in reducing the drownings. The TED’s are designed so any large objects such as turtles, debris, and other bycatch can escape the net without affecting the shrimp catch. Government officials have spent lots of time and money to urge the use of TED’s, hoping that many fishermen would use the device with no problem. “In 1989, United States federal regulations required the use of TED’s by shrimp trawlers operating in United States waters.” The United States has also initiated new treaties with all nations to ensuring that TED’s are used on shrimping fleets of these countries (Carr). A second cause of the Kemp Ridley’s endangerment is that, in the Gulf of Mexico there is a lot of offshore oil extracting with lots of spills that can lead to massive casultaties of turtles. These areas are the two main areas where the turtles feed. These feeding areas are near the oil exploration and production, and always threatened the lives of turtles by oil spills or fires (Wesiler). In addition, the debris in the Gulf of Mexico is always a serious danger to the Kemp Ridley Turtle of all ages. “Plastics, monofilament, discarded netting and many other waste items are either eaten by Kemp ridleys or become death traps when the turtles become entangled” (Weisler). The last factor for the decline in this species is Senator Gorton. According to Archie Carr, U.S. Senator Slade Gorton (R-WA) has introduced Senate bill S-768 amending the Endangered Species Act. One of its proposals, Section 403, will allow American shrimp trawlers to operate legally without TEDs and without consequence if turtles die in their nets. Because the Kemp’s ridley is already so much at risk, this amendment is a quick death warrant. There is some hope for the Kemp Ridley Turtle, though, for numerous movements have sprung up around the world. One movement is called HEART (Help Endangered Animals-Ridley Turtles). This sea turtle project is the Center for Marine Conservation and other conservation’s. High levels of education about the Kemp ridley turtle have helped the awareness of the public, helped get laws passed, and helped turtle programs get started (Carr). Also, the NPS and USGS volunteers searched the length of North Padre Beach for Kemp’s eggs and their nesting areas to protect them (Shaver and Miller). The government recovery plan for the Kemp ridley’s turtles is stated as follows. The government wants complete protection of nesting habitat and the waters adjacent to the nesting areas, mainly the Rancho Nuevo area, to help enhance the survival of hatching turtles....