Endangered Water Turtles in Florida

Freshwater Turtles

• The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission lists two freshwater turtles as being "state species of special concern." The alligator snapping turtle and the Barbour's map turtle are species at risk, if not critically endangered at present. Barbour's map turtles live in fast moving rivers while alligator snapping turtles prefer still lakes or slow rivers. Both have distinctive, spiky shells; Barbour's map turtles have a line of three spines down the middle of their backs, and alligator snapping turtles have spikes all over their shells.

Marine Turtles

• Five of the seven species of sea turtles nest regularly or occasionally on Florida's coast. These are hawksbill, loggerhead, Kemp's Ridley, green, and leatherback turtles. A sixth species, the Olive Ridley, passes through Florida's waters during feeding migrations. The International Union for the Conservation of Nature classes all of them as "endangered" or "critically endangered". Florida's beaches are the most important nesting sites for loggerhead turtles in the world.

Threats

• The major threats to freshwater turtles in Florida are habitat destruction, water pollution and collection for the exotic pet trade. Sea turtles are threatened by entanglement in plastic waste, boat collisions, disturbance and development of nesting beaches, hunting and pollution, whether from accidents such as oil spills or continuous agricultural, industrial and household pollution.

Conservation

• One state can effectively protect the freshwater turtles within it through habitat preservation, pollution management and controlling commercial turtle harvesting. These reptiles are usually confined to fairly localized regions and do not migrate. In 2009, Florida addressed the harvest of threatened freshwater turtles for the pet trade with the introduction of strict regulations. Sea turtles are a completely different story. International agreements are necessary to protect them because the threats do not come from just one country. Sea turtles also have ranges that extend over vast areas that extend beyond country boundaries. A crucial part of protecting sea turtles is preserving their nesting beaches, and Florida has the opportunity to conserve vital turtle breeding grounds.