Sea Turtles & Coral Reefs

Today's Creature Features are Sea Turtles & Coral Reefs!

Turtles are some of the oldest organisms on Earth, as are coral reefs, and both have survived extinction events in the past. Thus, it's a testament to the severity of our current extinction event that all 6 turtle species found in the Caribbean are on the IUCN Red List with decreasing populations, and that coral reefs are on the decline worldwide. Climate change, coastal development, exploitation, and pollution (especially plastic) are the main threats to both taxa, so two simple things you can do to help are avoid turtle products (meat, eggs, and shell) and minimize your plastic waste.

To read more about Sea Turtles & Coral Reefs, check out the 2 links below: https://www.earthday.org/seaturtles/ https://www.earthday.org/coral-reefs/