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Fifteen Sea Turtles Found Dead on Argentine Coast; Accidental Fishing Capture Suspected
🇦🇷 Argentina /Environment & Climate

Fifteen Sea Turtles Found Dead on Argentine Coast; Accidental Fishing Capture Suspected

From La Nación · (15m ago) Spanish Critical tone

Translated from Spanish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

TLDR

  • Fifteen sea turtles, identified as Loggerhead turtles (Caretta Caretta), have been found dead on the coast of Argentina this year.
  • The primary hypothesis points to accidental capture in fishing nets as the cause of death, a global issue exacerbated locally by the coastal fishing season.
  • While high tides can wash dead animals ashore, the turtles often have food in their stomachs and no signs of disease, suggesting they died at sea.

La Nación reports with concern on the alarming number of sea turtle deaths washing ashore along Argentina's coast. This year alone, 15 Loggerhead turtles have been found deceased between La Lucila del Mar and San Clemente del Tuyú, a stark increase that has prompted investigations by marine biology organizations.

In the last 15 years of monitoring, we have observed a peak in strandings at this time of year.

— Alan RosenthalMarine biologist and scientific director of the Asociación Naturalista Geselina (ANG), explaining the seasonal nature of turtle strandings.

The Fundación Mundo Marino and the Asociación Naturalista Geselina (ANG) are collaborating to understand the cause. While initial findings from earlier deaths in February allowed for some study, recent discoveries have involved carcasses in advanced decomposition, hindering necropsies. However, a consistent observation is that these turtles often have food in their stomachs and show no signs of illness, ruling out starvation or disease as primary factors.

Generally, they have a big problem with accidental fishing, they get trapped.

— Alan RosenthalExplaining the primary cause of death for the turtles.

The leading hypothesis, supported by evidence from the February strandings, points to accidental capture in fishing gear, particularly trawl nets used by commercial vessels. This is a worldwide problem, but it is particularly concerning in this region. The start of the coastal fishing season in April coincides with the turtles' migration northwards due to falling water temperatures, increasing the likelihood of entanglement. While strong tides can deposit these animals on the shore, the underlying cause appears to be human activity at sea, a tragic consequence of the fishing industry's impact on marine life.

This means that the possibility of accidental capture is greater.

— Alan RosenthalHighlighting the increased risk during the fishing season and turtle migration.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by La Nación in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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