Turtles

Reporting from Woods Hole, Mass. In the warm aquamarine waters of the Gulf of Mexico, an ottoman-sized loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta) paddles gracefully along a reef looking for food. Loggerheads, which can grow to almost a whopping four feet and they can weigh up to 550 pounds! That is unreal, they sustain themselves on a varied diet that includes delicious shrimp, conch, and yummy sea snails. The census will be released in October 2010, and will be cataloging the smallest of organisms, bacteria and the single celled microorganisms called archaea. Archaea are believed to play a role in the carbon and nitrogen cycles, which are obviously crucial to sustaining life. While a loggerhead can hold its breath for up to an hour, a hooked turtle can’t live if it can’t rise to breathe. Hundreds die each year on “long lines” in the Gulf of Mexico. Fishermen usually release turtles if they are still alive, but often they have drowned. I love learning more about different species, but this one saddens me to hear. I know that there are others who adore the same compassion toward innocent animals.

By May 2000, It is now almost 10 years later and there are life forms still unseen. The Census team has been on over 400 shipboard expeditions, discovering new life. So far more they discovered more than 5,600 now species, “many from the hottest, coldest, saltiest and deepest parts of the oceans.” since may, of 2000. An old species was rediscovered a mile beneath the Northeast ocean, which had been extinct for 50 million years, a shrimp, five inch specimen, with big eyes and red spots. The beaches of Florida are home to one of the highest densities of nesting loggerheads come under the protection of the Endangered Species Act as a threatened species.

My first reaction after reading this article was that it was very sad and I wish I could do something to help the poor turtles. Till I read further it just got worse, in 2005 it was said they could endure the capture of up to 203, with no more than 78 of those dead, without endangering the population. The numbers progresses as the years go by, so they created a long term plan. The fishery closed in May, it was only a recently reopened with temporary protective measures in a place.

This article made me think of the poor animals that are going extinct. It shouldn’t solely be blamed on people, or why else would we be exploring new species. There has to be a reason for everything, we just don’t like to see it knowing we can do something to help out. We can’t stop everything from going sour, there is only so much we can do. This article made me think about how the fisheries are made up to have large masses of certain fish. That compared to deer hunting ground where the sprinklers shoot out food. Well it is the same concept just taken a lot lighter. Basically, it isn’t a direct threat to our government in any way so the problem is told to be unforeseen.