Commonly used for livestock feed—woven sacks act like floating death traps, snaring turtles by the neck or limbs

In a groundbreaking study published in Marine Science, researchers from Israel’s Sea Turtle Rescue Center (ISTRC), the University of Haifa, and Ruppin Academic Center present the first high-resolution monthly growth data for sea turtles in the eastern Mediterranean—and uncover a deadly new threat: entanglement in polypropylene (PP) sacks.

This study, authored by Shir Sassoon, Yair Suari, and Dr. Yaniv Levy, focuses on the “epipelagic phase”—the early life stage of sea turtles when hatchlings drift passively in open water. While most conservation efforts target nesting beaches, this study shifts attention offshore, where plastic pollution silently kills juvenile turtles long before they reach maturity.

Turtle ‘Lost Years’ Finally Found

Sea turtles spend up to a decade adrift in the open sea, a period known to scientists as the “lost years” due to limited data. Using over two decades of rescue records (1999–2020), the team compiled length data from 577 young turtles—both loggerhead (Caretta caretta) and green (Chelonia mydas)—to track monthly growth for the first time in this region.

Findings show that loggerhead turtles grow at an average of 0.76 cm per month during their first 19 months of life, while green turtles grow faster—0.92 cm per month over the first 11 months. These growth rates mirror those found in other parts of the Mediterranean but fill critical knowledge gaps, particularly for green turtles during this early life stage.

Seasonal fluctuations in growth were also observed, with reduced rates in winter months, highlighting the sensitivity of juvenile turtles to environmental conditions.

Polypropylene: A Lethal Trap

But the most shocking discovery wasn’t about how turtles grow—it was about how they’re dying.

Out of 324 injured epipelagic phase turtles treated at the ISTRC, nearly half (48%) were entangled in woven polypropylene sacks. These sacks—commonly used for livestock feed—act like floating death traps, snaring turtles by the neck or limbs. Many were so severely injured that they required amputations; 12% died from their injuries.

Loggerhead turtles were most affected, particularly during the summer months. Between 2008 and 2020, PP sack entanglements surged from just 20% to 75% of all epipelagic injury cases. The number of incidents jumped significantly after 2017, suggesting a new pattern in maritime waste disposal.

These sacks are strong, lightweight, and slow to degrade—perfect for transport, devastating for marine life. When researchers traced the logos on the sacks, they found origins from as far as Romania, Russia, and Greece, mostly linked to livestock shipping.

“The threads unravel and act like tourniquets,” says Dr. Yaniv Levy, director of ISTRC. “We see turtles arrive unable to swim, starved, and in pain. Many suffer limb loss or systemic infections.”

Floating sacks may mimic natural cover like Sargassum seaweed, attracting juvenile turtles who use them as shelter. Once entangled, turtles often cannot free themselves.

ISTRC is uniquely positioned to collect long-term health and injury data. Their clinical records have helped transform the hospital into a research center that informs both policy and turtle care. Turtles are triaged with CT scans, blood tests, and X-rays, and their rehabilitation includes custom slings, IVs, and even prosthetics.

Rehabilitated turtles are typically released after two months of care, but the team notes that many never reach land for rescue. The actual impact is likely far greater than reported.

Policy Implications

The study urges international regulation on maritime waste, especially from livestock carriers. The team tracked suspect ships using Automatic Identification Systems (AIS), identifying several that sail regularly through Israeli waters but do not dock—making legal accountability difficult. There is a natural current that causes plastic sacks tossed illegally off the ship into the sea, to end up on the Levantine shores where they entangle juvenile turtles. Some plastics are believed to be dumped close to show where they blow into the sea.

A proposed bill in the Israeli Knesset calls for an end to live animal shipments, which would reduce sack and marine waste dramatically. It would also reduce undue animal suffering while being shipped for slaughter while alive at sea. Meanwhile, the study suggests declaring protected marine zones and enhancing multinational enforcement to curb this specific pollutant.

The epipelagic phase is one of the most vulnerable life stages for sea turtles. And while global conservation has made strides in nesting beach protection, this study shows that the open sea remains a lawless frontier.

If you live near a marine environment and find a turtle entangled in plastics, it’s important not to remove it without a veterinarian, says Levy. The plastic can cause reduced blood flow and necrotic tissue and removing it puts poisoned blood into the turtle. The turtle above explains what a vet needs to do to treat the turtle. First a round of antibiotics.

The problem with turtles is feed sacks, not plastic straws, Levy emphasizes.

“Plastic pollution regulations must be extended to pelagic zones,” the authors write in the paper. “We need international collaboration and enforcement—not just for turtles, but for the oceans.”

As Dr. Levy notes, these early-stage turtles are not just victims—they’re indicators. “They’re telling us where our waste ends up, and how fast we need to act.”

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Located on the natural island of Saadiyat, Park Hyatt Abu Dhabi Hotel and Villas sits adjacent to Saadiyat Beach, a nine kilometre stretch of environmentally-protected white sand beach on the edge of the turquoise Arabian Sea. The area is home to an abundance of wildlife including hawksbill turtles and bottlenose dolphins (like the ones found in an Egyptian private pool).

Marine biologist Arabella Willing joined the team from a sister hotel in the Maldives. Previously, she was a volunteer teacher on a remote island in the very north of the country, educating some of the most isolated communities about sustainability, marine life and the effects of coral bleaching.

“Abu Dhabi has amazing wildlife, which many people are not even aware of. Now is the time to engage our guests and employees on how we can be more responsible towards our environment, to make sure that the endangered species that visit our island remain protected. We conduct various educational programs with our employees through our corporate responsibility platform ‘Hyatt Thrive’. We also entertain the children and teenagers in the resort with activities relating to nature and the sea,” Willing stated on the company website.

The marine biologist arrived just in time for the nesting season of one of the most endangered species in the world, the hawksbill turtle (the first of the season’s nests was spotted in April).  Nests can contain between 90 and 100 eggs, each nest clearly marked to ensure hotel guests don’t disturb hatching that occurs about 10 weeks after eggs are laid. Every year between April and August, the turtles return to the island to nest, often having travelled half-way around the globe.

The resort is adjacent to the Saadiyat Beach Golf Club Abu Dhabi which itself doubles as a wildlife sanctuary. The golf club was awarded certification from Audubon International in recognition of its efforts to preserve and encourage wildlife on the course and surrounding areas, bringing the club one-step closer to becoming a fully certified Audubon International golf course.

The course hosts many rare bird species, such as Rufous-tailed Rock Thrush species, which are closely monitored by the club’s agronomy team. Over 50 different bird species have been identified on the course, including the Siberian Stonechat, European Bee Eater, Yellow Wagtail, Woodchat Shrike and European Roller.

Director of Agronomy Director Marcus Hartup said on the club website, “Since opening in 2010, Saadiyat Beach Golf Club has made a significant investment in protecting the magnificent wildlife which is native to the area.  Over the past two years we have seen an increase in migrating birds as well as a noted increase in gazelle activity.”

“The influx of birds to Saadiyat Island has been great to witness.  Each morning we venture out to the course never knowing what we’ll find that day.  Birds particularly love the area and we regularly conduct wildlife inventories to monitor which breeds are visiting the course.  Salt water lakes on hole five also provide homes to an abundance of marine life, including fish, jellyfish, mussels and crustaceans.”

World-class facilities designed in full harmony with their natural environment, with dedicated scientists to monitor things are a remarkable step up from chocolates on the pillow.

Reached by a bridge from the mainland, Al Saadiyat Island is another one of Abu Dhabi’s pilot sustainability projects that has drawn a lot of attention to climate and resource issues; so much so that one student designed a site-specific eco-mosque (with no dome or minaret) for the island, which received mixed responses.

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Scientists are puzzled over the record number of mostly endangered Hawksbill turtles being admitted to the Dubai Turtle Rehabilitation Project. The 210 turtles that have been brought in for treatment significantly exceeds the numbers received in previous years. While the cause for this increase is unclear, it appears that with coral reefs that nurture turtle food in drastic decline, the sick reptiles are not able to acquire sufficient food.

Though it is not unusual for the turtles to be washed ashore during winter, Kevin Highland with The Wildlife Protection Office told The National that this past January, 45 animals were found on one day alone.

When Dr. Ulrich Wernery – Scientific Director of Central Vet Research Lab (CVRL) performed autopsies on several turtles, he found that apart from having  no food in their intestines, there was nothing wrong with them.

Hawksbill turtles typically feed on sea sponges and jellyfish, which require healthy coral reefs for survival.

Highland also suggests that the reason for surge in admissions could be the increased awareness of where to take injured turtles.

The rehabilitation project is a joint effort between The Wildlife Protection Office and Jumeirah’s Aquarium team, which together have released 110 recovered turtles since 1996.

:: The National

More on coral reefs and turtles:

Worldwide Coral Reefs are in Dire Threat

Hawksbill Turtles Travel 20km Per Day

Plastic Waste Kills 100,000 Marine Animals Each Year

The post Record Number Of Starving Turtles Received At Dubai Rehab Center appeared first on Green Prophet.

Like people, Hawksbill turtles aren’t all domestic homebodies. Some – like me – prefer a more nomadic lifestyle. At least, this is what researchers have discovered Hawksbill turtles in the Persian Gulf. In recent years, the Hawksbill’s population has declined by 80%. In order to protect remaining turtles, the Emirate Wildlife Society and World Wildlife Fund (EWS-WWF), in conjunction with the Marine Research Foundation (MRF), began tracking their movements – with some startling results.

Six months after EWS-WWF researchers began tagging Hawksbills in the Emirates, Qatar, Oman, and Iran, they have released remarkable data that will ultimately help governments understand their conservation requirements.

In addition to mapping 6,500 locations where the turtles nest and forage, it was discovered that some of them traveled up to 20km a day, non-stop for two months, until they found appropriate feeding grounds 1,000 km away.

Several turtles traveled more than 5,000km during the time that researchers tracked their movements.

Emirate Hawksbills tend to prefer their home base and rarely travel beyond their nests. The waters off Abu Dhabi, Ajman, and Sharjah are particularly important and should receive a lot of protection

One Omani turtle ventured into the Gulf, a previously unheard of move, given that turtles superior size to Gulf turtles.

The Qatari turtles are a little more adventurous. One landed up off the coast of Bahrain, while another went as four as the southwest corner of the Gulf. The other two Qatari turtles preferred to stay at home.

The greatest explorers were the Iranian turtles, which sought out either small or larger reefs near Saudi, Qatar, Bahrain and the UAE. Scientists have not offered any explanation.

In time the consortium hopes to tag 75% of the Emirate and Gulf turtles, but they are seeking assistance. Contact the Marine Turtle Conservation Trust for more information about how to help the turtles or to track them.

:: Wildlife Extra

More on turtles and other marine conservation initiatives:

25 Shark Species Need Urgent Protection

What Tagged Turtles From Qatar Tell Us

1200 New Species In World Oceans

image via prilfish

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