kristenb95
Registered: May 2013
City/Town/Province: Maumelle
Posts: 1
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Sea Turtle Endangerment
I first became interested in nature when I was about four years old. I was always playing outside – collecting caterpillars, making mud pies, forming rock collections, etc. I live across from a lake in a suburban town in Arkansas. Growing up by the lake allowed me to spot many different animal species, my favorite being turtles. I have vivid memories walking around the lake and pointing every time I saw a distinctive turtle head pop up above the glassy surface. Sometimes I would slowly step into the shallow end, and if I was lucky, catch a young red ear slider turtle. I never held them in captivity, but seeing them up close was an enlightening experience. Their lime green shells and red patches fascinated me.
I plan to major in environmental science, and I previously planned on getting my degree in marine biology. As I have grown older, I have done more research on all types of turtles. I was aware that sea turtles were threatened, but I had no idea that certain species were/are on the brink of extinction. For my project I decided to incorporate my passion for sea turtles with my passion of conservation.
I was shocked to find out that six out of seven sea turtle species are endangered, and that only one out of every ten hatchlings survives until adulthood. I read about why sea turtles are important and ecosystems and what threats they face. I quickly realized that most people are like I was, oblivious to the severity of the turtles’ endangerment, so I decided to make a presentation.
The first step I took was spending hours researching sea turtle endangerment. Next I wrote a paper listing and explaining the five main threats to sea turtles (entanglement, poaching, urbanization, pollution, and global warming). Then I formed an additional paper describing why sea turtles are vital to ecosystems and how they benefit the environment. After writing these papers, I compiled images of each species, and I designed a tri-fold board to display both paper and the pictures. I then shared my findings with friends, family, and people within my community.
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