Global research priorities for sea turtles: informing management and conservation in the 21st century

Over the past three decades, the status of sea turtles and the need for their protection to aid population recovery have increasingly captured the interest of government agencies, nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) and the general public worldwide. This interest has been matched by increased research attention, focusing on a wide variety of topics relating to sea turtle biology and ecology, together with the interrelations of sea turtles with the physical and natural environments. However, despite being relatively better studied than most other marine fauna, management actions and their evaluation for sea turtles are often hindered by the lack of data on turtle biology, human-turtle interactions, turtle population status and threats. In an effort to inform effective sea turtle conservation a list of priority research questions was assembled based on the opinions of 35 sea turtle researchers from 13 nations working in fields related to turtle biology and/or management. The combined experience of the contributing researchers spanned the globe as well as many relevant disciplines involved in conservation research. An initial list of more than 200 questions gathered from respondents was condensed into 20 metaquestions and classified under five categories; Reproductive Biology, Biogeography, Population Ecology, Threats and Conservation Strategies.