Sea turtle carcasses found consecutively on Jeju Island

Sea turtle carcasses are being consecutively found on Jeju Island.

The environmental organization 'Jeju Friends of Nature' reported on the 7th that the carcass of a female loggerhead turtle was discovered on the 4th at Hwangwoochi Beach located in Seogwipo-si, Jeju Island.

Recently, there has been an increase in the discovery of sea turtle carcasses in Jeju.

Jeju Friends of Nature witnessed the carcass of a loggerhead turtle at Iho Tewoo Beach in April and discovered the carcass of a young green sea turtle at Seolkumbadang Beach, close to Hwangwoochi Beach, in June.

The loggerhead turtle is a species commonly seen along the Jeju coast, and it nested four times on the Jeju's Jungmun coast between 1998 and 2007.

Jeju Friends of Nature said, "According to Professor Kim Byeong-yeop of the Department of Oceanography at Jeju National University, there are more than 60 sea turtles stranded on the Jeju coast between 2021 and 2022 alone. This is a much higher number than in the past. The reason for this has not yet been determined."

Also, on the 4th, the Seogwipo Maritime Police rescued a hawksbill sea turtle entangled in discarded fishing nets at Unjin Port in Hamo-ri, Daejeong-eup. There were no signs of illegal capture or injuries, so the police released the hawksbill sea turtle into a safe maritime area.

The green sea turtle is currently listed as an 'Endangered' species on the International Union for Conservation of Nature(IUCN) Red List, and loggerhead turtle is listed as 'Vulnerable'. These species are not only critically endangered but also representative environmental indicator species directly affected by climate crisis.

Jeju Friends of Nature said, “Jeju authorities must actively take measures for sea turtle conservation” and emphasized, “Although the task of collecting sea turtle carcasses and rescue missions sea turtles are entrusted to the maritime police, it is not systematic. It is necessary to take charge of tasks related to sea turtle strandings such as statistics and protective measures, to maritime-related administrative departments in Jeju as well."