Sea turtle bycatch occurs in several ways, through hooking or entanglement on longlines, entanglement on Fish Aggregating Devices (FADs), and they are sometimes netted in in purse seines. Successful bycatch mitigation techniques include replacing squid with fish bait, using circle hooks, dynamic spatial and temporal measures (e.g. TurtleWatch), and improved FAD design.
SeaLlifeBase is a source of biological and distribution data for sea turtle species. Well illustrated species profiles can be found in the 'Marine Turtles of the Maldives' (green, hawksbill, olive ridley, loggerhead and leatherback turtles). NOAA's 'Find a Species - Sea Turtles' has information on protection status, biology and population status, distribution, threats, conservation measures and research. Locate handy Species ID guides here.
Species
| 3-Alpha Code | Name | Scientific Name |
|---|---|---|
| DKK | LEATHERBACK TURTLE | Dermochelys coriacea (new FAO) |
| FBT | FLATBACK TURTLE | Natator depressus |
| KEZ | EASTERN PACIFIC GREEN TURTLE | Chelonia agassizii |
| LEO | OLIVE RIDLEY TURTLE | Lepidochelys olivacea |
| LKV | OLIVE RIDLEY TURTLE | Lepidochelys olivacea (new FAO |
| LTB | LEATHERBACK TURTLE | Dermochelys coriacea |
| NAD | FLATBACK TURTLE | Natator depressus |
| TTH | HAWKSBILL TURTLE | Eretmochelys imbricata |
| TTL | LOGGERHEAD TURTLE | Caretta caretta |
| TTX | MARINE TURTLES NEI | Testudinata |
| TUG | GREEN TURTLE | Chelonia mydas |