Story of a Sea Turtle

Commended Entry: "The Story of a Sea Turtle" by Syifaa binti Mazuhan from Malaysia

This article was submitted in the Kids World Travel Guide Essay Competition 2023 in the Junior Category 8 - 11 years.

The Story of a Sea Turtle

Hi, my name is Iris, I'm a Hawksbill sea turtle that lives in Malaysia. I'm 30 years old and I have never laid any eggs yet. This year, I’m going to return to my birthplace to lay eggs for the first time! How exciting!

Although, I am also very worried about the future of my babies because our life as a sea turtle is hard and we are always in danger. I am a really lonely sea turtle. There’s only a few of us left now. When I swim in the ocean, I rarely see another sea turtle like me here. My friends and families around me are lost and died in different ways. Some were crashed by boats, because tourist boats were driven really fast until we are accidentally hit by boats.

Human should drive slowly and carefully near our home to make sure there are no sea turtle ahead. Human also should look out for us, turtles too. Jellyfish and shrimps are our favorite foods. Some sea turtles mistaken plastic and balloons for jellyfish and shrimp, because sometimes old plastic smells like shrimp and plastic bags looks like jellyfish for us. Many of us died after eating these plastics. Human catch turtles too. Human use our body parts as gift and snacks, our shells are packed into gifts for tourists to buy. As for our meat, they will make soup or BBQ our meat. Some of my friends had been dinner for humans, because human thought turtles can cure a number of ailments such as anemia, asthma, and respiratory problems.

Do you know turtle laid hundreds of egg at one time? But not all of the eggs laid by us will hatch. Some are carried away by floods, but most are eaten by predators. Humans also steal and eat our eggs. That make me even more worried about my eggs.

Dear humans, I was wondering if you can help me, my species and the environment? Firstly, can you please stop throwing trash all over the place especially in the ocean? It hurts the environment and us a lot. Secondly, please don't steal our eggs, it may make us extinct in the future. Thirdly, always remember to drive your boat slowly, so we can easily avoid accidents and scars from boats. And lastly, please stop using plastic, my families and friends are always mistaken plastic for food.

We, the Hawksbills are considered Critically Endangered around the world. I wish there are no trash in the ocean, if plastic don’t exist, nature life would be really happy. We will have clean water and healthy life, perfect for other marine life. I hope humans take good care of the ocean, so we can live in harmony and continue existing in the future. My family and friends will grow, so I won’t be lonely ever again. I also hope humans protect our eggs too so I could see my babies in the future.

Congratulations on your essay "The Story of a Sea Turtle", Syifaa. Such a wonderful essay! Thank you!

Syifaa binti Mazuhan attends SRII Ar-Razi in Selangor/ Malaysia. English as Second Language. Home Language is Malay

Read more about the Life Cycle of Sea Turtles here: http://www.juaraturtleproject.com/projects/sea-turtle-conservation/