UC San Diego

This study focuses on a historical and literature analysis of sea turtle conservation in Mexico by quantifying conservation efforts based on ten conservation Aichi Biodiversity Targets. Conservation effort was measured by using systematically selected scientific literature published between 1973 and 2018. In addition, a comparison was made on how conservation priorities and effort have shifted over two timeframes (1960 – 1999; 2000 – 2018), representing the beginning of the conservation movement and as well as current conservation views. The results showed that over the last three decades there has been a positive shift in research effort in sustainable marine management and public awareness, as well as protected areas and extinction prevention have continued to be a Very High priority with a High amount of research effort in both conservation timeframes. However, not a lot of research effort has gone into high priority conservation strategies that pertain to ecosystem and habitat management and climate change mitigation. The majority of the research comes from the northwest region of Mexico, more specifically, Baja California Sur; most likely due to having the longest coastline compared to other states, accessibility to sea turtle, several marine biology research institutions, and community-based conservation groups. Tamaulipas and Oaxaca are two sites that have over six decades of research due to their conservation camps being established in the late 1960s, which has supported the monitoring and collection of long-term nesting data. Overall, because most of the efforts have been centered on one part of the sea turtle’s life cycle (the prevention of sea turtle and egg harvest on beaches was banned on 1990), Mexico is not meeting the ten Aichi targets in terms of sea turtle. However, the illegal take of sea turtles and eggs persists in some regions while at the same time there are new challenges and threats that sea turtles are facing at other life stages and habitats, such as environmental degradation, bycatch, pollution, invasive species, and the negative side effects from climate change. This analysis allows for identification of knowledge gaps or imbalance in conservation efforts in Mexico and gives a better picture of which species and locations could benefit from greater financial, scientific, and community support to improve the conservation of sea turtles along the coasts of Mexico.