The threat to sea turtles goes beyond plastic. Did you know that chemical pollution can aggravate gender imbalance in these creatures?

Sea turtles are already suffering from imbalances linked to climate change. Water temperature influences the sex of turtles: below 30°C, males are born, above that, females. With global warming, many sea turtle populations are becoming increasingly female, threatening their ability to reproduce, and therefore their survival.

But now it seems that chemical pollution could be exacerbating the problem… Chemical pollution would skew sea turtle sex ratios by causing more eggs to hatch as females, putting the species at risk of extinction… ⚠

In a population of green turtles(Chelonia mydas) in the northern Great Barrier Reef, 99% of hatchlings in recent years have been female.

Read the scientific article: https: //www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2023.1238837/full