ad collaborative post // Nearly everyone enjoys and appreciates marine life. Whale watching San Diego is one of the most popular tourist activities on the Southern California coast. If you would like to be more than a tourist and get involved in the preservation of marine life, there is much you can do to help save the oceans.
Photo by Iswanto Arif on Unsplash
Endangered Marine Life in the Pacific
There are many varieties of marine life in the Pacific and all of them deserve care and protection. However, some are at higher risk than others. These species need immediate attention if they are to survive. Three of these species include:
1. Pacific leatherback sea turtles: The largest turtle in the world, the adult leatherback can weigh up to 1,000 pounds. They face threats both on the beaches where they lay their eggs and in the waters where they swim. Their nesting habitat is disappearing due to development. They are also killed as bycatch.
2. Blue whales: Blues whales San Diego are very popular with wildlife fans. They can be seen playfully cavorting off of many coastlines. The threat to blue whales originates in the commercial whaling past when these animals were valued for their meat and blubber. They were hunted nearly to extinction and have struggled to recover.
3. California Coast white abalone: A type of plant-eating marine snail, abalones are endangered due to over-fishing. It has been illegal to fish for white abalone in California since 1997, but the high price of their meat makes them attractive to poachers.
What To Do To Help These Endangered Species
The good news is that everyone, young and old, can get involved in the effort to save marine life. There are national and local organizations that sponsor volunteer events. There are also many actions you can take on your own that will help save these amazing creatures.
Start with a beach cleanup San Diego. Various organizations schedule beach cleanups in the area so there are plenty of dates to choose from. Meet up with friends and enjoy a day of beautiful SoCal weather while making the environs safer for marine life.
Contact your local lawmakers and representatives. Let them know that protecting endangered marine life is important to you. Get informed and vote for government leaders who support the laws that save the oceans.
As an individual consumer, you can make better choices at the checkout. Shop to support marine life by doing any of the following:
- Purchase only sustainable seafood.
- Avoid cosmetics that are made with shark squalene
- Don’t buy souvenir shells of nautiluses, conches, or other sea life.
- Don’t wear jewelry made of sea turtle shells or coral.
Everyone can stake steps to protect marine life. The more individuals learn about our oceans and the important role they play in ecosystems, the better choices they can make.
Educate yourself today by visiting a marine wildlife sanctuary, attending an endangered species event, or going on a whale-watching tour. Let’s give marine life hope for a better future.
It’s shocking how much rubbish we can find at shores across the world. I have done a few clean ups through RSPB here in the UK and we collected an entire small truck full of rubbish in one session. We need ton raise awareness of this for sure!
Thank you for sharing this…it is so important to raise awareness on this issue!!!