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Cover image of The Case of the Green Turtle
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The Case of the Green Turtle

An Uncensored History of a Conservation Icon

Alison Rieser

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The true story of the controversial battle to save the world’s most famous endangered species.

The journals of early maritime explorers traversing the Atlantic Ocean often describe swarms of sea turtles, once a plentiful source of food. Many populations had been decimated by the 1950s, when Archie Carr and others raised public awareness of their plight. One species, the green turtle, has been the most heavily exploited due to international demand for turtle products, especially green turtle soup. The species has achieved some measure of recovery due to thirty years of conservation efforts, but...

The true story of the controversial battle to save the world’s most famous endangered species.

The journals of early maritime explorers traversing the Atlantic Ocean often describe swarms of sea turtles, once a plentiful source of food. Many populations had been decimated by the 1950s, when Archie Carr and others raised public awareness of their plight. One species, the green turtle, has been the most heavily exploited due to international demand for turtle products, especially green turtle soup. The species has achieved some measure of recovery due to thirty years of conservation efforts, but remains endangered.

In The Case of the Green Turtle, Alison Rieser provides an unparalleled look into the way science and conservation interact by focusing on the most controversial aspect of green turtle conservation—farming. While proponents argued that farming green sea turtles would help save them, opponents countered that it encouraged a taste for turtle flesh that would lead to the slaughter of wild stocks. The clash of these viewpoints once riveted the world.

Rieser relies on her expertise in ocean ecology, policy, and law to reveal how the efforts to preserve sea turtles changed marine conservation and the way we view our role in the environment. Her study of this early conservation controversy will fascinate anyone who cares about sea turtles or the oceans in which they live.

Reviews

Reviews

While I recommend this book for readers interested in sea turtle and herpetological history, it will also give readers with no knowledge outside of academia a glimpse into the world of policy and politics in the conservation of amphibians and reptiles.

Holds many lessons for those interested in the conservation of marine creatures and of biodiversity in general.

The story of efforts to save green sea turtles, including by farming them, illustrates conflicts common to conservation work.

A marvelous study of the history of global efforts to conserve the wide-ranging green turtle... Rieser's tour-de-force makes compelling reading because it is packed with intrigue, almost like a spy novel. It is a page turner and a must-read for all those engaged in trying to stem the illicit trade in wildlife products.

Rieser shares with us an exhaustive, rich and mind-blowing historical narrative supported by crucial evidence and resources. [The Case of the Green Turtle] is an extremely valuable contribution to understanding Latin America's wildlife conservation and an important story for all those concerned with saving our natural world.

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About

Book Details

Publication Date
Status
Available
Trim Size
6
x
9
Pages
352
ISBN
9781421405797
Illustration Description
34 b&w photos, 2 maps
Table of Contents

Preface
Acknowledgments
Introduction: From Seafood to Icon
1. Turtle Kraals and Canneries
2. Turning Turtles on the Great Barrier Reef
3. The Turtle Islands of Sarawak
4. The Gifted Navigators
5. The

Preface
Acknowledgments
Introduction: From Seafood to Icon
1. Turtle Kraals and Canneries
2. Turning Turtles on the Great Barrier Reef
3. The Turtle Islands of Sarawak
4. The Gifted Navigators
5. The Geography of Turtle Soup
6. A Turtle Flap in London
7. The Buffalo of the Sea
8. Who Will Kill the Last Turtle?
9. Red Data for the Green Turtle
10. Reptiles on the Red List
11. You Lost the Turtle Boat
12. One Man's Opinion
13. Down on the Farm
14. Conservation through Commerce
15. The Best Available Science
16. A Global Strategy
Epilogue: Supply and Demand
Appendix A: The 1966 U.S. Classification of Chelonia mydas as Rare and Endangered
Appendix B: IUCN Principles and Recommendations on Commercial Exploitation of Sea Turtles
Notes
Bibliography
Index

Author Bio
Featured Contributor

Alison Rieser

Alison Rieser is the Dai Ho Chun Distinguished Professor of ocean policy in the Department of Geography at the University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, and a Pew Fellow in Marine Conservation.