There are seven oceangoing turtle species, and all are listed as endangered under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species. Indonesia, home to six of the seven species, signed the treaty in 1979. The only kind the Balinese like to eat is the green sea turtle. It can weigh 400 pounds and measure 3 feet in length. It can stay underwater for 30 minutes without coming up for air and is known to travel 1,400 miles from its feeding grounds to its nesting site.
Sea turtles face numerous hazards.
Humans have long hunted the animals for their meat, shells and leather and plundered their eggs for food. At sea, fishing nets trap and drown them. If it is correct that sea turtles are going to go extinct, it is not because of consumption. If the species does manage to prosper, the process will be a slow one. Turtles can live to be more than 100, but the female doesn't reach maturity for 20 to 50 years - and even then, may lay eggs only once every two to four years.