Green turtle rebounds, moving from ‘endangered’ to ‘least concern’

The green turtle, found across the world’s oceans, is recovering after decades of decline, according to the latest IUCN Red List assessment. The species has been reclassified from endangered to least concern. “I am delighted,” Brendan Godley, a turtle expert from the University of Exeter, U.K., told Mongabay. “It underlines that marine conservation can work, there is hope, and we should rightly celebrate it, sharing some ocean optimism.” Historically, humans hunted green turtles (Chelonia mydas) for their meat and eggs, decimating their populations. Even after hunting declined, the species continued to suffer: from entanglement in fishing nets, degradation of nesting beaches and ocean habitats, pollution, diseases, and climate change. However, the global population has increased by roughly