The Problem: Oil spills from exploration for and transportation of oil and gas, as well as from urban and agricultural run-off, pose substantial risks to marine turtles and to the habitats they rely upon. Oil from spills and leaks that sit on the surface can result in sea turtles inhaling oil and its vapors into their lungs, swallowing oil while feeding, and becoming coated in oil, to the point of becoming entirely mired and unable to swim. Oil is often also found drifting in the water column or can be disturbed from the sediments on the ocean bottom. Although turtles maybe the toughest in terms of resisting some of the immediate physical damage from oil spills, they have proved to be more vulnerable to chemical exposure that happens indirectly through the food they eat. Not only do larger spills pose a problem for the turtles, studies have shown that continuous exposure over time will weaken a sea turtle’s overall health, making it more susceptible to other dangers.
Because sea turtles are highly migratory – spending different life-history stages in different habitats – sea turtles are vulnerable to oil spills at all life stages: eggs on the beach, post-hatchlings and juveniles in the open ocean gyres, subadults in nearshore habitats, and adults migrating between nesting and foraging grounds and on the nesting beach.
A 2002 study hundreds of tiny hatchling sea turtles were captured offshore of Florida’s mid-Atlantic coast nesting beaches. Turtles were captured along the “downwelling lines” that form along the western edge of the Gulfstream. The baby turtles were among the floating mats of Sargassum that accumulates in these areas. 20% of the hatchlings studied had ingested tar that had accumulated in their gut or on their mouth. Smaller amounts of plastic were also found. In an similar 1994 study 63% of the baby turtles had ingested tar. (Read full research paper. 
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Unfortunately, areas of oil and gas exploration, transportation, and processing often overlap with important sea turtle habitats, including U.S. waters off the Florida and Texas coasts and throughout the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean. Areas of oil and gas exploration, transportation, and processing often overlap with important sea turtle habitats. Sea turtles have been at risk of exposure in many oil spills, particularly in the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico. Most reports of sea turtle impacts are from Florida or the Caribbean. In addition, a spill that occurs miles from nesting beaches or feeding grounds, such as sea grass beds and reefs, can impacted these areas and sea turtles as ocean currents move the oil, generally towards the coast.
Turtles are very vulnerable to oil spills at beach nesting sites during the breeding season. Nesting sites are typically on sandy beaches, which, if oiled, can lead to the following problems:
Even if sea turtles avoid direct contact with oil slicks, eating contaminated food is a direct exposure path, and reduced food availability is an indirect exposure route. Oil can be trapped in the sediments of turtle grass beds, killing the seagrass, a significant component of green turtle diets. Sediments below the damaged seagrasses subsequently eroded, exposing the underlying rock bed.
Decreases in invertebrates and sponge populations affect other sea turtle species as well, including hawksbills, loggerheads, and ridleys. After long-term contact with oil many invertebrates are killed and many others may decline in numbers. A variety of petroleum compounds are toxic to fish and invertebrates, although the effect is not uniform; different species have different sensitivities to different compounds.
Species Affected: All species of sea turtles are affected by marine pollution.
The Solution: Education is important to solving marine pollution. The public can get involved in this issue by:
Case Study: Between 1992 and 2001 there were 26 oil spill incidents in the Gulf of Mexico and 9 incidents along Florida’s Atlantic coast. Incidents were from vessels, pipelines, platforms, and docks. One of the greatest impacts from oil has proven to be consumption. A study of loggerhead turtles found that they will indiscriminately eat anything that appears to be the appropriate food size, including tar balls. The effects on the digestive system were large esophageal swelling that displaces the liver and intestines, causing severe swelling and buoyancy problems. The study also examined the effect of oil on all stages of life.
Related links:
Sea Turtle Conservancy
