This video is released by WWF as part of a project to investigate the level of pollution affecting turtles within the Great Barrier Reef.
By fitting fit a small GoPro camera to a turtle, WWF hopes to better understand the post-release behaviour of tagged green turtles.
The project has the support of a wide range of WWF partners including Banrock Station Wines Environmental Trust, James Cook University, The University of Queensland, the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, State and Commonwealth government agencies, Indigenous rangers and local community groups.
There are seven different species of sea turtles, the WWF says, nearly all of them classified as Endangered.
“The animals are slaughtered for their eggs, meat, skin and shells, sea turtles suffer from poaching and over-exploitation. They also face habitat destruction and accidental capture in fishing gear. Climate change has an impact on turtle nesting sites. It alters sand temperatures, which then affects the sex of hatchlings. “
Originally published by Cosmos as A turtle-eye GoPro view of the Great Barrier Reef
Bill Condie
Bill Condie is a science journalist based in Adelaide, Australia.
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