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Tourism is one of the world's fastest growing industries
every year millions of us had the sun,
sea and sand with one thing on our minds:
having fun.
But there are others that have been visiting warm sandy beaches for a lot longer than we
have
You've watched the dinosaurs come and go
and here now make room for us
in an ancient world.
Marine turtles have been swimming the world's oceans for over a hundred and ten million
years,
but now they are endangered.
If we don't act now they might be gone forever.
The good news is that there are a few things that you can do to help stop this from happening.
Marine turtles usually breed in the summertime,
both males and females swim for hundreds of miles before arriving at the sandy beaches
at about the same time as we do.
Turtles do most things slowly
including mating,
which can take several hours.
They also like to bask lately at the sea surface
this makes them especially vulnerable to being hit by a speed boat and jet skis.
Every year many turtles wash ashore with terrible and often fatal injuries.
You can help!
Don't drive speed boats or jet skis whether are turtles in the water;
if you do use boats or jet skis, make sure you keep a look out for any turtles nearby.
Always drive slowly and keep a safe distance from any turtles you see.
If you are
lucky enough to see a turtle, make sure to keep your distance
as some turtles can deliver a very nasty bite.
Belive it or not, turtles absolutely love to eat jellyfish;
Sadly, they often mistake indigestible litter such as plastic bags for a tasty jellyfish snack.
This can lead to a slow
and painful death.
You can help! Always dispose of litter responsibly:
never throw litter in the sea,
never leave it on the beach,
and never flush it down the toilet.
Female turtles emerge at night to lay their eggs in the back of sandy beaches.
They are very nervous and easily scared by any movement,
noise or lights on the beach.
If she is repeatedly disturbed
a female turtle may dump her eggs at sea whether will certainly perish.
You can help!
Don't walk on turtle nesting beaches at night during the breeding season;
make sure there are absolutely no Hotel or Villa lights shining on the
beach at night;
Ask Hotel managers to switch off
any problem lights;
and don't go to Bars and Restaurants that refuse to turn off their lights
or that beeing build illegaly on turn of the nesting beaches.
Female turtles lay their eggs in the dry sand at the back of the beach
and leave them to incubate in the heat of the sun.
They are extremely vulnerable and may get squashed if:
walked, driven or leaped over.
Beach furniture will compact the sand if placed on top of the nest,
it will also shade out the all important heat of the sun.
And you can imagine what would happen to the eggs if a parasol spike will push through the nest.
You can help!
Don't drive vehicles or ride horses on turtle nesting beaches during the turtle breeding season;
avoid walking along the back of the beach;
and during the day, keep all beach furniture close to the sea,
ideally a few meters of the water's edge.
After about two months, the eggs hatch.
The hatchling turtles dig up with to the surface of the sand where they wait for nightfall.
They make a dash to the sea on the cover of darkness,
and while the sea maybe only a few meters away,
this is the most hazardous time of the turtle's life.
Predators patrol the beaches
looking out for tasty hatchling snacks; and we can make things worst.
Beach furniture
Sand castles
and holes dug in the sand could be lethal traps for the tiny hatchlings.
You can help!
Always make sure beach furniture is removed from nesting beaches before nightfall.
Never left any sand castles
and fill in any holes that could been dug in a turtle nesting beach.
Just think:
thru this simple action you might make the difference between life
and death
for a turtle.
The tiny hatchlings find their way to the sea by running towards the brightest lowest horizon
which is naturaly created
by the reflection of the moon and stars on the sea.
Bright lights from any Hotels and Bars built behind turtle nesting beaches confuse
the hatchlings,
instead of running to the sea
the hatchlings run inland
towards the lights
across roads and into gardens.
You can help!
Again, make sure that are absolutely no lights shining on turtle nesting beaches at night.
And don't go to any illegaly build Bars and Restaurants
or those who refuse to turn off their lights.
This way you can help the hatchlings get to the sea
and give them extra chances of survival they need.
They all so really stuck together as hatchlings in the first few days of their life
is thought that only one in one thousand turtle eggs actually survive to become an adult.
Turtles are on the way of extinction
and extinction is forever.
For by doing you're own bet
you can give these spectacular animal
the chance to survive for generations to come.
If you want to meet hatch the turtle hatchling and learn more how tourism can make a positive
difference to the environment check out the Travel Foundation website
and if you want to find out more about the endangered Green turtles
and how you can help them
check out the websites of the Marine Conservation Society.