I came across this article in my news feed on the way to the office this morning and decided to share.

Two green sea turtles rescued from the fishing nets in the ocean in Argentine, were released back to the water near San Clemente after plastic detox. Plastic contents were found in the turtles` excrements and it took a while to have them treated with vitamins, iron, and a mix of antibiotics! I took a minute to find out what green turtles normally eat and was appalled with the statistics.

Green turtles (Chelonia mydas) are known as world`s largest hard-shelled turtles, live in the coastal areas of over 140 countries. Being herbivorous, seagrasses constitute the main part of their essential diet, and this is what gives their fat (not the shell itself) green color and therefore they are being called green turtles. However, the reality is that over 52% of world`s species of all sea turtles end up eating plastic or other human induced litter (Dr. Qamar Schuyler, 2015), while around 62% of green turtles eat plastic mistaking it with algae. WWF reports that ingesting even one item of plastic can be lethal in 22% of cases. In case of survival, continuous consumption of plastic may result in slower reproduction rates.

https://www.uq.edu.au/news/article/2015/09/world%E2%80%99s-turtles-face…
https://www.worldwildlife.org/stories/what-do-sea-turtles-eat-unfortuna…