ABOUT THE SPECIES
Hawksbills are hunted in many parts of the world for their shell, which is the source of the substance known as “tortoiseshell”. International trade of tortoiseshell is illegal but the shell continues to be used to make jewellery and other decorative items and hunting remains a huge threat to their populations. Other threats to hawksbills include collection of their eggs, other human impacts on nesting beaches, climate change and being killed as by-catch from fishing industries. Recent research suggests that the Queensland population of hawksbills is declining at a worrying rate.
ABOUT THE ORGANISATION
Sea Turtle Foundation is a non-profit, non-government group based in Australia working to protect sea turtles through research, education and action. Turtles face many threats from , and deliberate and accidental deaths caused by fishing activities around the world. These factors combined are pushing many of the world’s populations of sea turtles toward extinction. Sea Turtle Foundation is working to address threats through rescuing stranded turtles in North Queensland, training others to respond to strandings, providing educational programs for schools and communities and supporting research into turtle health and ecology throughout the Indo-Pacific region.
You can vote for the Sea Turtle Foundation and the Hawksbill sea turtle right here in The ANiMOZ Aussie Wildlife Vote 2020!