État des lieux sur la situation des tortues marines en Algérie

There are two families, five genera and five species of sea turtle or Testudines in the Mediterranean but in Algeria only three have been observed off the Algerian coasts. There is greater occurrence of the leatherhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta caretta - Linnaeus, 1758), and the leatherback sea turtle (Dermochelys coriacea coriacea - Vandelli, 1761), by contrast, the green turtle (Chelonia mydas - Linnaeus, 1758) is the rarest species. The statuses of these species in the IUCN red list range from vulnerable to in danger of extinction (Claro & De Massary, 2012), which has prompted international and regional bodies to establish management strategies for sea turtle populations in the Mediterranean and elsewhere in the world. In this context, and through its programme to monitor stranded Testudines in Algeria, the CNRDPA1 seeks to better understand these species and their migratory flows so as to establish conservation and protection measures for these sea creatures.