Upwell works with small-scale fishers in Mexico to analyze and reduce sea turtle entanglement in fishing lines and nets. Your donation will give fishers support from Upwell and partners to improve fishing practices and better protect turtles.

Sea turtles at risk

Generations of small-scale fishermen have relied on the rich waters off North Central Sinaloa, Mexico for their livelihoods. They share these waters with five species of sea turtles, all of which are listed as endangered or threatened.

No one knows the importance of these iconic animals for marine ecosystems better than small-scale fishers. Fisherman Adalberto García says, "It is important to care for sea turtles because they eat a lot of jellies, which are predators of the shrimp and fish larvae that we need to sustain our lives."

Yet, for the 70,000+ small-scale fishing boats in Mexico that use gillnets, traps and longlines, no standardized methodology exists to document, report or reduce the incidental capture of sea turtles, commonly referred to as bycatch. Sea turtles can become entangled in nets and lines, and as air-breathing reptiles, they can drown if they are unable to surface.

Upwell’s approach

Upwell works beyond the nesting beaches, finding ways to protect sea turtles in the marine environments where they spend more than 99% of their lives. We collaborate with academic institutions and non-profit organizations in Mexico to create bottom-up, incentives-driven approaches to conservation. On this project, Upwell is partnering with fishers to develop a scalable methodology for reporting sea turtle bycatch data and safely releasing bycaught sea turtles. Together, we’re creating maps that overlay fishing zones on sea turtle habitats to co-create locally-driven management solutions for reducing bycatch.

By avoiding bycatch “hotspots” (high-risk areas for fisheries interactions with sea turtles) in the southern Gulf of California and modifying fishing practices and gear, small-scale fishers can deliver more ecologically responsible seafood products to local markets. Our community-based fishery management strategy empowers fishers as leaders in both collecting data and managing fisheries and protected species like sea turtles.

Overcoming obstacles

However, time spent documenting sea turtle bycatch is time lost on fishing. For small-scale fishers who depend on their catch each day to survive and feed their families, the added cost of documenting bycatch or safely releasing bycaught turtles can be difficult to bear. Upwell will compensate participating fishers for their time documenting bycatch and releasing bycaught sea turtles until they become established as responsible fishers and can earn a price premium for the products they can deliver to market without harming sea turtles. In addition, recognizing that varying levels of literacy can be an impediment to participation in data collection, Upwell plans to test ways in which VHF radios can be used to relay data with fishers less comfortable with using logbooks to record sea turtle bycatch.

How you can help

Your support can help:

• $50 - compensate a fisher for time spent reporting bycatch for a full fishing season

• $100 - purchase a VHF radio to enable broader participation by fishers with low literacy

• $250 - sponsor a community training on safe release of bycaught sea turtles

• $500 - complete a set of bycatch hotspot maps to help fishers protect sea turtles

Your support can provide small-scale fishers with incentives for recording entanglements and leadership training for reducing sea turtle bycatch. Our partners on this project, including Shellcatch, Grupo Tortuguero de las Californias, Centro Interdisciplinario de Investigación para el Desarrollo Integral Regional del Instituto Politécnico Nacional and Centro Interdisciplinario de Ciencias Marinas del Instituto Politécnico Nacional, are providing technology and expertise. Upwell invites you to join us in providing fishers with training and support to better protect sea turtles in the marine environments where they need it most.

Many thanks to these generous donors