Sea turtles are endangered in many places due to illegal harvest of their eggs. Billion Baby Turtles helps solve this issue by providing critical funding for important nesting beaches. So far, we have helped save nearly 3 million hatchlings at 25+ beaches around the world. These funds help our local partners hire people to patrol nesting beaches, keeping predators and egg collectors away and get hatchlings into the water. For every $1 donated, we can save 10 hatchlings at an important beach.
Six of seven species of sea turtles are threatened or endangered due to harvest of their eggs, hunting of their meat and shells, entanglement in fishing gear, and other threats. While collecting and selling eggs is illegal in most countries, many places still have a black market for the eggs and some local residents continue collecting them.
When we protect nesting beaches and get hatchlings into the water, sea turtles can rebound. Our funds help local organizations hire local staff, benefitting the community and the turtles. Our funds also help build hatcheries to keep the nests safe and purchase important equipment. We work with more than 20 organizations around the world to protect the most vulnerable beaches. We fund community-based projects with endangered turtle populations and little access to resources.
Protecting sea turtles requires patience. It can take 20+ years for a beach to start seeing an increase in nesting after conservation efforts begin. But once they do, recovery can come quickly. Colola Beach, Mexico, one of our long-term partners, has increased from 500 nests in 1999 to more than 45,000 now. With our help, partners in El Salvador and Nicaragua have saved nearly all of the critically endangered hawksbill nests at two sites for the past 8 years.
