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ACCORDING TO LIZ - This Saturday, May 23, World Turtle Day celebrates all turtles, including tortoises and terrapins, and to raises awareness internationally about the threats they face.
Angelenos may already be more aware than most Americans about our chelonian friends, between the California Desert Tortoise being the state reptile and reports of invasive snapping turtles from the eastern United States taking over niche habitats in our state but, in celebration, knowledge bears repeating.
American Tortoise Rescue was established as an American nonprofit in 1990; its mission to protect turtles and tortoises from extinction caused in whole or in part by human activity – from encroachment on existing habitats to the illegal pet trade, from oil spills and entanglement in fishing nets to the much-publicized ingestion of plastics.
Based in Malibu, they were able to save and rehome thousands of turtles within their first decade, but it became clear to conservationists that public ignorance, misinformation, and lack of awareness were fueling the problems far faster than one-shell-at-a-time rescues could remedy.
Their introduction of World Turtle Day at the turn of the millennium spearheaded a more activist approach to focus global attention on turtles and tortoises through education and behavior change, emphasizing “simple, accessible actions such as learning about native species, refusing to buy wild-caught turtles, reducing pollution, and protecting nesting habitats.”
Through necessity, this quickly expanded beyond the United States.
Zoos, aquariums, wildlife authorities, schools, and conservation organizations across the world began observing the day with educational programs, habitat cleanups, rescue fundraisers, and public awareness campaigns. Social media further amplified their reach, allowing conservation messages to travel globally and connect local actions to a shared international cause.
World Turtle Day serves as both a conservation checkpoint and a reminder. It highlights progress where it exists but, more importantly, draws attention to the persistent and growing threats turtles face in the modern world, evolving into a broader platform for ecosystem protection, wildlife ethics, and long-term environmental responsibility.
A study on the effects of biodiversity-awareness days listed World Turtle Day as an example of how one can increase internet search traffic on protected species.
Turtles have been on Earth for 200 million years. They’ve thrived through ice ages, continental shifts, and the asteroid that ended the dinosaurs. Not so well with climate change and human predation with some species now limited to fragmented populations or captive breeding programs.
Today 61% of all turtle and tortoise species are threatened or extinct due to global warming, habitat loss, plastic pollution, cars, lawn mowers, and the illegal trade in exotic species. Threats are everywhere… and most turtles can't outrun or outswim them.
Discarded fishing gear traps and drowns turtles and marine mammals. People buying cute little baby Aldabrans abandon them, often long before they grow into furniture-moving behemoths, tipping the scales at 550 pounds.
Turtle factoids:
* All tortoises and terrapins are turtles, but not all turtles are tortoises or terrapins. A tortoise can only live on land while other turtles are swimmers. Terrapins reside at the edges of rivers and lakes and, instead of flippers or elephant-like legs, have webbed feet that allow them to move quickly on the land and in the water.
* Turtle shells are made of 50 different bones that have fused together. The popularity of goods made from their glossy shells has threatened their survival since the 1700s.
* Female sea turtles navigate using the Earth’s magnetic field and return to the beach on which they hatched to lay their own eggs.
* There are seven species of marine turtles; Hawksbill, Loggerhead, Leatherback, Olive Ridley, Green, Flatback, and Kemp's Ridley. Six of these seven species are at risk of extinction.
* Most marine species are large and highly sociable animals that cross vast territories in large groups so don’t make good pets. But they are at ever-increasing risk from industrial fishing operations and ocean pollution, especially from plastics and oil.
* All turtles suffer from the illegal wildlife trade, where many thousands die painful deaths en route to market due to indifference by smugglers. Then there is the demand for turtle parts that some cultures use in traditional medicines.
Environmentally, turtles have been taking care of this planet long before humans rose up on two legs, playing critical roles in stabilizing ecosystems.
Freshwater turtles keep rivers, ponds, and lakes clean by scavenging dead plants and animals, reducing the spread of disease and controlling algae.
Sea turtles maintain healthy ocean ecologies and seagrass beds, supporting fish populations and improving water quality.
Tortoises spread seeds across landscapes, helping forests and grasslands grow. Some varieties dig burrows that provide shelter for over 350 other species.
When turtle populations drop, these systems begin to degrade. Seagrass beds collapse, water quality worsens, and biodiversity declines. Protecting turtles is not a niche cause, it is a foundational conservation strategy.
World Turtle Day highlights wider environmental issues that affect countless other species, including humans.
Turtles are long-lived and sensitive to environmental changes, making them indicator species. Declines in turtle populations often signal the onset of broader problems such as increasing pollution, overfishing, climate stress, and habitat destruction.
Unlike natural extinction events, most modern turtle threats are directly linked to human actions. Coastal lighting disorients hatchlings. Plastic waste enters food chains.
By reframing turtle conservation as an ethical responsibility, World Turtle Day challenges individuals, industries, and governments to acknowledge their role in both the problem and the solution.
Turtles are increasingly losing out to human activity, including climate change; warming temperatures during incubation means fewer and fewer males. Total numbers are perilously reduced and are slow to rebound with fewer and fewer hatchlings surviving their first days let alone reaching breeding age. As few as 1 in 10,000 of some species reach adulthood.
Many harmful behaviors toward turtles stem from ignorance rather than malice. An emphasis on education, providing accurate information about turtle biology, legal protections, and simple protective actions, turns turtle awareness into planetary prevention tools.
What humans can do for turtles – and the planet – today:
+ Skip single-use plastics. Turtles are scavengers and even flimsy plastic bags can be mistaken for jellyfish
+ Pick up litter. Along beaches and anywhere from which trash might travel to become snacks for hungry turtles.
+ Help a turtle cross the road – in the direction it was heading. Would you force a little old lady to go back on the sidewalk from which she’s just stepped off?
+ Don't buy baby turtles – sale of specimens under four inches is illegal in most places not only for the animals’ survival but because those cute red-ear sliders can carry salmonella. Contact local rescue groups or wildlife control.
+ Never release a pet turtle into the wild; it can spread disease and non-native species will disrupt local ecosystems.
+ California Desert Tortoises raised as pets, not only don’t have the skills to survive without the human care on which they have come to depend, but have done untold damage by infecting existing populations in the wild with debilitating and often fatal respiratory infections.
+ Talk about what you’ve learned. Awareness should not end on May 24 but become a year-round commitment.
P.S. Don’t assume turtles are “slow.” Speaking from experience, as soon as you look away, they can disappear very quickly.
Slow is subjective, but one being embraced by more and more humans as a positive living choice, albeit... far too slowly.
Liz Amsden is a former Angeleno who moved to Vermont in 2024 with her tortoises, one of which has been with her since 1987. All are of South American descent but born in the USA, the most recent from a colony established when some were swept north to Florida by Hurricane Katrina. None is a California Desert Tortoise because, as people know, they are a protected species and not allowed to leave the state. A regular CityWatch contributor, Liz writes on issues she’s passionate about, including social justice, government accountability, and community empowerment. Bringing a sharp, activist voice to her commentary, she continues to engage with Los Angeles civic affairs from afar and can be reached at [email protected].
