As of 2011, the SWOT database has expanded to include more than 5,700 individual data records contributed by more than 550 data providers (and literature sources) from more than 2,800 distinct nesting beaches. As such, it is currently the most comprehensive global sea turtle nesting database in existence, and it is well positioned to serve as the world’s premier data clearinghouse and monitoring system for sea turtles.

Shell Beach is a 120 kilometers (74 miles) stretch of beach and mudflats along the northwestern coast of Guyana in South America. The area is renowned as the annual nesting ground for four marine turtle species: leatherbacks, hawksbills, olive ridleys, and green turtles. The area’s bird diversity is also one of the richest in Guyana. For those reasons, Shell Beach was identified by the government of Guyana—through a consultative process—as a priority site for protected area status.

In recognition of their global plight, sea turtles were among the first species listed on the CITES Appendices when the treaty came into force, and CITES protection over the past 35 years has been critical to ensuring their survival. Formidable opposition from some CITES Parties to all attempts to weaken sea turtle protection and a unified effort from the conservation community have been key to maintaining the international ban on trade.

Don Juan has been collecting sea turtle eggs and selling them to earn a little extra money for years now. In spite of all the eggs he’s seen, it’s been years since Don Juan has seen a baby turtle. He can sense that something isn’t right and that—if things continue this way—the turtles will likely disappear completely. But in the impoverished coastal communities of Nicaragua, it is today that matters most.

When human needs are met through stable incomes, rural communities are better able to help protect wildlife for the future. Proyecto Tití alleviates the threats posed by plastic bags, while empowering women in rural communities by teaching them practical skills that help generate income for their families.

The food we eat, the clothes we wear, the work we do, and the leisure activities we pursue affect the world around us—from coral reefs to farmlands, from sea turtles to ourselves. Our own behavior is, in fact, the direct cause of many of the most pressing environmental problems we now face, including the status of sea turtles.

Back in the 1950s, the “riddle of the ridley turtle” stumped renowned sea turtle biologist Archie Carr. Where did that name come from? And where, indeed, did the turtles come from? Researchers have been working tirelessly to solve it ever since. In this Special Feature, SWOT presents the first ever global map of the biogeography of Olive ridley sea turtles.