Here you will find a range of educational materials, including marine turtle identification keys, turtle handling guidelines, videos, brochures and booklets.
Suggestions for additions are welcome! You can help us keep this directory up to date. If you would like to suggest additional publications for inclusion in this list, please drop us a line.
Resources from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
(downloadable from the page "Sea Turtles and Fisheries Observers")
Sea Turtle Life History Form and Manuals
- National Marine Fisheries Service Southeast Fisheries Science Center. 2008. Revised 2010. Careful release protocols for sea turtle release with minimal injury. NOAA Technical Memorandum NMFS-SEFSC-580, 130pp.
Observer Training Videos (More videos are available from the NOAA website. When downloading, please note that the following videos have very large file sizes.)
- Sea Turtle Observer Video [mpg, 103 MB, 34:23 min]
- Removing Fishing Gear from Longline Caught Sea Turtles [mpg, 257 MB, 25:13 min]
Details the tools and techniques for safely removing hooks and line from incidentally captured sea turtles.
Translations into Spanish and Vietnamese can be found on the NOAA website. - Leatherbacks Aboard [mpg, 92 MB, 9:03 min]
Video demonstrating a technique to bring a leatherback sea turtle aboard a commercial fishing vessel to safely release it from fishing gear.
Related Technical Memoranda
- National Marine Fisheries Service Southeast Fisheries Science Center. 2008. Sea Turtle Research Techniques Manual. NOAA Technical Memorandum NMFS-SEFSC-579, 92pp.
Handling and Release Quick Reference Guides
Resources from the Maldives-based Olive Ridley Project (NGO)
Brochures
- ‘Ghosts of the Indian Ocean’. Info-graphic downloadable in English and in Dhivehi.
A 2-page educational brochure showcasing the problem of entanglement of marine turtles in discarded ('ghost') nets in the Indian Ocean.
Videos (on YouTube)
- 'Threats of Ghost Fishing'.
A short animation highlighting the effects of ghost gear on sea turtles in the Indian Ocean. Produced in collaboration with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and funded by Global Blue. - ‘Ghost nets of the Indian Ocean’.
Four-minute footage taken around the Maldives and Sri Lanka, which documents what happens when marine organisms encounter discarded or lost fishing nets at sea.
Various guidelines
- WIDECAST (Wider Caribbean Sea Turtle Conservation Network). Marine turtle trauma response procedures: a field guide.
- ISSF (International Seafood Sustainability Foundation). Longline skipper’s guidebook. Available in English, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, French, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Spanish, Vietnamese and Tagalog.
- ISSF (International Seafood Sustainability Foundation). Purse seine skippers’ guidebook. Available in English, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, French, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Spanish, Vietnamese and Tagalog.
- ISSF (International Seafood Sustainability Foundation). Purse seine observer training. Available in English, French and Spanish.