Kemp's Ridley Sea Turtle - by Nick Cracchiolo

BIO 227-01

Kemp’s Ridley Sea Turtle

by Nick Cracchiolo 

http://www.nwf.org/~/media/Content/NWM/Animals/Reptiles-Amphibians
/KempRidleyseaturtleMIchaelPatrickONeill570x375.ashx

 “The Most Endangered of All Sea Turtles” (Drews) 

Sargassum Seaweed:
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/
commons/4/4e/Lines_of_Saragssum.jpg

Today I want to talk about the Kemp’s Ridley Sea Turtle. They have come very far since their extremely low populations levels in the 80s but more needs to be done to ensure their survival for years to come. They have an olive grey shell, with a plastron (underside) color of yellowish white. They are one of the smallest sea turtles and are on average, 70cm long and can weight up to 40kg (Drews). These sea turtles live mostly in the  northern part of the Gulf of Mexico. Adults live mostly in the muddy shallow waters of the Gulf, however the babies, when first born, swim offshore into the open ocean and drift with Sargassum seaweed. This drift along the Gulf’s currents lasts for two years until the turtles return back to the shore to feed and grow to maturity (U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service). Kemp’s Sea Turtles are also carnivores. The adults eat crabs,  shrimp, clams, and sea urchins, and the children’s appetites are less known but we do know that they eat smaller crabs (Drews). 

Major nesting beaches in the State of Tamaulipas, Mexico, and proportion of total nests documented for each beach in 2009 (Source: J. Pena, GPZ), and location of nests recorded in U.S. (Source: Padre Island National Seashore, FWS, Florida Marine Research Institute, Georgia Department of Natural Resources, South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, and North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission). 

Kemp's Nest:
https://www.fws.gov/kempsridley/
images/MyPIX/nestWEB.jpg

Geographic and Population Changes

The first nesting populations were initially discovered in 1947 at Rancho Nuevo where the adult female population was estimated to be about 40,000 or more. It took only about three decades for the population to decline to 702 nests in 1985. Each female lays about two and a half nests each season and because of this those 702 nests actually only represented about 300 females for that season. 

Listing Date and Type of Listing

The Kemp’s Sea Turtle was originally listed as “Endangered” throughout its range on December 2, 1970 and has received protection from the Endangered Species Act since then. In 1975 it was prohibited from all international trade under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. It is also defined as “Critically Endangered” by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (National Marine Fisheries Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and SEMARNAT). 

Cause of Listing

Recorded Number of Nest from 1947 to 2010
Source: National Marine Fisheries Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and SEMARNAT

Kemp’s Ridley Sea Turtles became endangered mainly due to human activities like egg harvesting and accidental capture. However, egg harvesting has largely decreased over the years and is only rarely seen in the turtle’s Mexican habitats. There are also other threats to these turtles like beach cleaning and human recreation on the beaches like driving and the use of beach equipment, like chairs and umbrellas. Another main threat to the Kemp’s turtles is the loss of their habitat due to human construction and natural disasters that cause erosion. Take, for example, the BP oil spill back in 2010, the oil disrupted some nesting areas in the US gulf and those nesting beaches had to be moved to an undisturbed area. (National Marine Fisheries Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and SEMARNAT). 

Recovery Plan

The first revised recovery plan for the Kemp’s Ridley’s was approved in 1992 and since then our knowledge of the species and what affects it has greatly increased. This current plan (created in 2011) has been undertaken to address the current threats and further needs for the turtles. This plan was created to further the goals of the initial recovery plan to make the species stronger and more resilient. This new plan aims to protect the sea turtle to a point where it no longer needs the protections given to it by the Endangered Species Act and other environmental agencies. The plan looks to decrease fishery bycatch, increase research and monitoring to learn more about the breeding and foraging habits, determine migration patterns, and finally increase monitoring of nesting conditions and populations. Some US fisheries are already regulated to use sustainable fishing practices to avoid harming the Kemp's turtles, but this plan looks to increase these regulations or convince other fisheries to abide by the sustainable practices. These protections include expanding the Kemp’s turtle’s Rancho Nuevo Sanctuary and apply reforesting efforts to the sanctuary as well. The research will be focused on the marine habitats of the juvenile sea turtles as much isn't known about this stage of their life. The plan outlines that a 6 year average population of 40,000 nesting females each season would allow the Kemp’s sea turtle to be delisted (National Marine Fisheries Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and SEMARNAT). 

Expected number of nests predicted in the model for past and future
years based on the assumption of continued high egg survival rates.
 Source: National Marine Fisheries Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and SEMARNAT

What Can We Do?

Now, you may be asking, what can we do? Well for one we can decrease our plastics use which trap and kill not only the kemp’s sea turtles but other marine life. When at a Gulf Coast beach, first check to make sure the area you are in is not protected and there are no nests around before setting up your beach setup. Also, if you see any of the beautiful Kemp's Ridley Sea Turtles please don't touch or disturb them. For those living on Gulf Coast beaches, you can report any nests or report poaching to the authorities. Finally everyone can contribute just a little to help fund the protection of the Kemp’s Ridley Sea Turtle to organizations like: WWF and Tecolutla Turtle Preservation Project.

Works Cited

Drews, WWF / Carlos. Kemp's Ridley Tutle. 12 11 2016 

<http://wwf.panda.org/what_we_do/endangered_species/marine_turtles/kemps_ridley_turtl

e/>.

National Marine Fisheries Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and SEMARNAT. Bi- National

 Recovery Plan for the Kemp’s Ridley Sea Turtle (Lepidochelys kempii), Second Revision. 

PDF. Silver Spring, Maryland: National Marine Fisheries Service, 2011.

U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. Kemp's Ridley Sea Turle Face Sheet. 4 2015. 12 11 2016 

<https://www.fws.gov/northflorida/seaturtles/turtle%20factsheets/kemps-ridley-sea-turtle.htm>.