The European Commission has issued a warning to the Greek government requesting enhanced efforts to protect the nesting sites of endangered loggerhead turtles. Each year, female loggerhead turtles (Caretta caretta) return to lay their eggs on the beeches on the Greek island of Zakynthos. During recent years, these nesting sites have been under increasing stress from tourism while conservation efforts have subsided due to lack of funding by the Greek government.

The European Commision's warning follows many months of lobbying and email campaigning by WWF Greece and WWF members, who worked to raise awareness and concern over the lack of protection the loggerhead population was receiving.

Lack of funding by the Greek government lead to the shutdown of conservation operations at the National Marine Park of Zakynthos and exposed turtles to the impacts of a rapidly growing tourist industry in the area. The population of loggerhead turtles nests on Zakynthos and any threat this population faces endangers the entire species.

Find out more:

• Campaign for Mediterranean Turtle Protection Brings EC to Action (WWF)
• Three of the Seven Existing Species of Marine Turtle Are Critically Endangered (WWF)