Leatherback Turtle
Dermochelys coriacea

Threats to survival:

The threats to the Leatherback Turtle vary from region to region, but four key areas can be identified:

Loss of habitat due to commercialisation of tropical beaches (particularly tourism) and industrialisation	Accidental capture by fishing activities, due to trawl net fishing	Pollution caused by industries in tropical waters, and heavy industry in temperate migratory waters	Human predation
Animal predation

Illustrations: M. Demma © ICRAM

Human Predation

-In many countries the Leatherback Turtle population has been threatened by the unregulated harvesting of eggs. This is due to various cultural beliefs surrounding the properties of the eggs. Populations have been decimated in countries such as Malaysia, Surinam, the Guianas, and Costa Rica.

-In a smaller number of countries, the Leatherback Turtle is hunted for food. In the Kei Islands (South West of New Guinea, in the Maluku province of Indonesia), for example, leatherback turtles are hunted regularly as a source of food.

Leatherbacks are now considered an 'endangered species' throughout their distributional range. The species included in Appendix 1 of the CITES and in the Red Data Book of the IUCN.

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