ACADEMIC

Understanding the role of sea turtles in the marine ecosystem and conservation issues. Improve the skills for sighting records and identifying turtles underwater. The Sea Turtle Distinctive Specialty course introduces divers and snorkellers to basic sea turtle identifi cation and conservation.

The goals of AWARE Sea Turtle Awareness course training are:

• To familiarise students with the role of Project AWARE in preserving the aquatic environment.
• To introduce sea turtle species common in temperate or tropical waters.
• To provide students with the knowledge and skills needed to identify turtles and record sightings.
• To inform students about sea turtle population decline,
  the importance of sea turtles to marine biodiversity, and what they can do to prevent further decline.

FIELDWORK

Two SCUBA dives OR snorkel dives (two more hours), including the following skills:

• Hover motionless for at least one minute.
• Assess site for possible sea turtle sighting areas, observe habitat for hazards and responsibly clean up rubbish where encountered.

• If turtles are seen feeding, record the food source and turtle species - including diagrams of any unfamiliar
  turtles species.

• Locate and identify sea turtles, noting the number, sex, behaviour, injuries, tags, or any other significant information.

• Record sightings on a slate, including diagrams and descriptions of any unfamiliar sea turtle species.
  Prepare data for reporting.