About the Sea Turtle Conservation Program
Green and hawksbill sea turtles are listed as Threatened and Endangered and are protected federally under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 and locally under CNMI Public Law 02-51.
The Wildlife Action Plan (WAP) belongs to CNMI residents across all islands and reflects broad community input. It brings individuals as well as public and private organizations together to work towards shared conservation goals by identifying and recommending conservation actions that participants can implement that will also help them meet their own goals and needs. The Division of Fish and Wildlife's conservation efforts are guided by the WAP.
Programmatic activities include:
- Diurnal nesting beach monitoring
- Nest excavation and inventory
- Nocturnal nesting turtle flipper tagging surveys
- Stranding/salvage recoveries and necropsies
- Rapid interisland assessments
- Education outreach
- Participation in cooperative research studies (satellite tag deployment, genetic, isotope, and contaminant sampling)
Note: The tagging activities shown in the photos were conducted under NMFS Permit #15661-01/02. Nesting, egg and hatch monitoring activities were performed under USFWS Permit #TE-017352-15.
These program activities directly support priority actions in recovery plans for US Pacific populations of green and hawks bill turtles:
- Stop the direct harvest of turtles through education and enforcement
- Characterize population demographics, status and trends through long-term in-water censuses
- Identify stock home ranges using DNA analysis
- Identify and protect primary foraging and nesting areas
You, too, can help
us save turtles!
It's OK to help! If you observe a stranded live, sick, wounded, or dead turtle please call our sea turtle stranding hotline immediately at 287-8537 (CTR-TLES) or 287-7560.
If you have tips or information concerning a poached turtle call: NOAA Office of Law Enforcement (671) 472-7200; CNMI Endangered Species Special Agent 989-6096; or CNMI DFW Enforcement Section Officers: 989-6092/6095.
Teachers and Educators
A classroom-suitable presentation entitled Mariana Island Sea Turtles are available on the sidebar under program publications or on our publication page.
Additional turtle outreach materials are available on the Posters and Brochures page.
Our Island Environment teaching workbooks are available here.
Volunteers
If you would like to volunteer your time to help conserve sea turtles please contact our program partner Micronesia Islands Nature Alliance (MINA). Volunteer email: or phone: 670-233-7333 (REEF)
Partner Organizations
- CNMI Bureau of Environmental & Coastal Quality MMT
- CNMI Mariana Nature Islands Nature Alliance
- CNMI Sea Turtle Conservation Program
- National Institute of Standards & Technology (NIST)
- NOAA Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center Marine Turtle Program
- NOAA Pacific Islands Regional Office Protected Resources Division
- Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Program
- State of the World's Turtles
- U.S. Geological Survey National Wildlife Health Center