Sea Turtle Project
Sea turtles are beautiful, ancient creatures who grace the ocean with their presence. According to the National Ocean Service, sea turtles have existed since the age of the dinosaurs, going back 110 million years! Unfortunately, human activity has been the demise of these once flourishing species. Big Blu World was formed in 2019 to combat human activity and raise awareness about the trash filling our oceans, poisoning wildlife like the great sea turtle. Since our creation, we have put together several project campaigns, including The Sea Turtle Project to help restore our oceans’ health. Keep reading to learn more about Big Blu’s mission to save sea turtles.
Why It’s Important to Protect Sea Turtles
Many people may have never seen a sea turtle in real life before, but many of us are familiar with the popular “Finding Nemo” character–Crush. In the movie, Crush claims he is 150 years old. While it is hard to know the exact age of sea turtles, experts in the field have a conservative estimate of sixty years, while some have been noted to live to 100! Today, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has the sea turtle’s status as endangered, with the threat of becoming extinct. Big Blu World cares about all the animals in our planet’s ocean. While we are dedicated to beach and ocean cleanup, the importance of conservation of our ocean’s sea turtles is now more important than ever! Sea turtles are considered a “keystone species,” meaning they play an important role in their environment and their disappearance would drastically impact other species in their environments. Check out these top five reasons why Big Blu World cares so much about sea turtles:
- Sea turtles provide prey control like jellyfish.
- Sea turtles’ nesting positively impacts the health of beaches by leaving behind important nutrients for coastal vegetation growth.
- Hatchlings are an important part of many animals’ food sources including fish, birds, raccoons, and other predators.
- Sea turtles are a huge part of the coastal community from religious beliefs to tourism opportunities.
- Sea turtles help keep seagrass beds healthy with their grazing habits.
If sea turtles were to become extinct, many other ecosystems and organisms would suffer greatly.
Human Impact on Sea Turtles
One of the greatest threats to the existence of sea turtles is humans. While climate change has played a big part in the sea turtles decline, resulting in fewer hatchlings and changes in the hatchling sexes, another human activity has drastically impacted the sea turtles’ life span and survivability. Humans hunt sea turtles for their eggs, meat, skin, and shells. Even though sea turtles have been ruled off-limits, there are still poachers out there seeking shells and meat for the black markets.
But poachers are not the sea turtles’ only worry. Currently, our oceans and seas are filled with trash. Turtles are very curious creatures and often consume plastic bags, fishing lines, and other debris that pollutes our oceans. According to the WWF, 52% of sea turtles have consumed plastic waste and for 22% of those turtles, the consumption of this plastic waste will result in death. The plastic can cause blockages and damage to internal organs resulting in stunted growth, slow reproduction rates, and ultimately starvation.
Join Big Blu World’s Mission
In 2019, Big Blu experienced first-hand the devastation that humans can wreak on ocean environments. Our passion for our mission was fueled by our visit to Punta Cana, where the amazing beach views were obstructed by piles of garbage! With every trip our family took, we experienced similar issues with garbage and debris polluting waterways. The final straw occurred when we lost a device in a lake. A quick dive below the surface revealed the true secrets hiding in the depths. Between three dives, we removed over 100 pounds of trash from this one lake! This fueled our fire and Big Blu World was formed!
What You Can Do to Help Sea Turtles
Sea turtles have quite the fight ahead of them to survive, but unfortunately, they cannot do it alone. They need a little helping hand. Big Blu World has made it easier than ever to help out sea turtles while also benefiting our ocean as a whole! At Big Blu, we are focused on saving the sea turtles through beach and ocean cleanup. By educating others and raising awareness of the amount of plastic polluting our oceans are experiencing, we strive to create a cleaner environment for sea turtles and their other sea friends. We have dedicated our time to cleaning our shores all over the United States in hopes of removing plastic and other debris while funding other projects to increase the health of our waters. So far Big Blu has removed the following trash items from our oceans and waterways:
- 24, 583 plastic water bottles
- 17,121 cans
- 5,521 cigarette butts
- 3,855 glass bottles
- 2,923 bags
- 1,192 fishing gear
- 857 PPE masks
- 342 shoes
- 73 tires
- And 550 other forms of plastic, trash, and other debris that cause sea turtles and other wildlife harm.
In addition to cleaning our shores and raising awareness about plastic pollution, we have created The Sea Turtle Project. Sea turtle lovers can simply purchase a sticker and the proceeds help fund The Turtle Hospital!
The Turtle Hospital
Big Blu World has partnered with The Turtle Hospital in the Florida Keys to further its mission of saving the turtles. The Turtle Hospital is a 5019(c)(3) charity focused on turtle rescue and rehabilitation. Formed in 1986, The Turtle Hospital was founded on four goals:
- To rehab injured sea turtles and return them to their natural habitat
- Educate the public through outreach programs and local schools
- Conduct and assist with research in conjunction with state universities
- Work toward environmental legislation making the beaches and water safer for sea turtles
This organization has helped and released more than 1,500 sea turtles back into the wild since opening their doors. Big Blu World values this partnership as an important resource in helping sea turtles through education and rehabilitation. Purchase your sticker today to support The Sea Turtle Project and help The Turtle Hospital continue its mission.
Our planet’s future is at stake. We have already lost many animals to extinction (and we are not just talking dodo birds and dinosaurs here). In 2021, 22 animals went extinct, including the ivory-billed woodpecker. If we do not take action now, sea turtles will become the next creature we are reading about in books instead of seeing laying eggs on our beaches. Big Blu World is dedicated to cleaning our oceans through events, education, and recycling programs to further the life of these majestic, ancient sea creatures. You too can get involved!
