World Turtle Day
Today turtle day is celebrated on May 23rd, Perhaps not everyone knows that at least eight species of tortoises and turtles live in Italy, many at risk of extinction.
In mainland Italy lives the Hermann's tortoise, in a bad or inadequate state of conservation, the marginated tortoise, in Sardinia, Tuscany and Lazio due to ancient introductions, the Greek tortoise, present in Sardinia also in this case due to ancient introductions. In the freshwater environments of our country we find the European pond turtle, threatened and in decline throughout Italy, and the Sicilian pond tortoise, with inadequate conservation status. Both species are seriously threatened by habitat degradation and the introduction of alien species of tortoises, in particular the American red-eared terrapin
Three species of turtles can be observed in our seas: the loggerhead sea turtle, the green turtle and the leatherback turtle. The first is the most common species and is also the only one to nest along our coasts. The green turtle prefers the warmer waters of the eastern Mediterranean to nest and its presence in the Italian seas is only occasional. The leatherback turtle nests in the Atlantic and some of its specimens, which enter the Mediterranean to feed, can occasionally also be observed in the Italian seas.
Sea turtles are subject to various threats caused by humans, both on land and at sea such as the human disturbance of the sites where the species lays its eggs, also known as nesting sites (both for the disturbance that can be caused to the specimens in the phase of nesting, but also for the physical damage that can be caused to the nests by the mechanical cleaning of the beaches and the disorientation that artificial lighting can cause in the newly born turtles), the degradation of the beaches, the mortality due to accidental capture in fishing gear or trapping, ingestion of drifting plastic waste and collision with boats.
The data on the conservation status of all these species are reported on the website http://www.reportingdirettivahabitat.it edited by ISPRA. ISPRA has also published guidelines for the rehabilitation and handling of sea turtles which also includes an analysis of the conservation status of the 3 species present in the Mediterranean sea.