Get Sea Turtles Off The Hook!

Mom was so excited when I found a press release the other day about Kate Walsh and her involvement with Oceana, the largest international organization focused solely on ocean conservation. In case you aren't familiar with Kate Walsh, she is an actress on the show Private Practice.

Kate Walsh is a long time Oceana supporter and she will be featurned in a public service announcement (PSA) that encourages people in the U.S. to get involved and to help save sea turtles. Mom has been trying to get get people involved with sea turtle conservation for years but she's never made a PSA. Hmmm. Mom will never be Kate Walsh but she could make a PSA. I could even be in it even though I'm not a sea turtle!

The campaign is called "Getting Sea Turtles Off the Hook" and it can be seen in print, on TV, and on the Web. The title refers to the fact that lots of sea turtles get caught on hooks hanging off of longline fishing nets, and get trapped in trawl nets and gillnets. Longlines are the worst and are strung across the oceans with baited hooks at intervals. They can stretch for up to 75 feet! That's crazy! These hooks attract everything to them, not just fish. Sea turtles, birds, and even marine mammals get caught in them and die. This is so sad because there are so many animals that are endanged and dying on longlines for no reason. The campaign is focused on gaining stronger protection from fishing gear as well as protection for key habitat areas. Oceana is also working to persuade Congress to pass comprehensive sea turtle protection legislation.

Last summer, Walsh traveled to Sandy Point National Wildlife Refuge on St. Croix where she filmed her PSA. This refuge is an important nesting location for leatherback sea turtles and Kate was there during hatchling season. How excited she must have been to witness baby sea turtles emerge from their nests and make their way across the nighttime beach toward the ocean. Mom remembers the first time she saw this on Wassaw Island. She was amazed that these little sea turtles could find their way to the ocean, but it made her sad to think about how many of them would never make it to adulthood. She was in awe of them and is still in awe of them. It never gets old to her and she could watch them every day for the rest of her life.

When you're in the Caribbean you have to swim and that's just what Walsh did - with sea turtles. "It was such an amazing experience to see green sea turtles gliding through the waters," said Walsh. Oh how I wish I could swim with sea turtles! Mom tells me that they not only glide through the water but they also stop and feed, bobbing here and there with the waves. I know that Mom will be swimming with them next month and I hope she takes pictures so I can post them for you to see.

Walsh goes on to say "We need to raise awareness about sea turtles because most people don't even know that they're in trouble. If people know about what's actually happening in the water, it will encourage them to take action to help save sea turtles." Exactly! Only when you know and understand what is happening in the oceans will you get involved in conserving ocean species and their ecosystems. Even if you don't live near the ocean, which we don't, what happens in the oceans affects you. It affects us all and all of us are responsible for caring for them.

After you watch this short video of Kate Walsh's trip to St. Croix, please visit http://na.oceana.org/en/turtlesoffthehook to see additional pictures of her trip and to learn what you can do to help sea turtles.