Leatherback turtles are an endangered species of sea turtle found throughout the world's oceans. Leatherbacks nest on the beaches of warm areas, including the Americas. Las Baulas National Park in northwestern Costa Rica is a particularly important leatherback nesting beach. Each winter, researchers and volunteers travel to Las Baulas to study the turtles and work to save them from extinction.

Students will learn about leatherbacks and the threats they are facing, and they'll read about how volunteers are helping to study the turtles. The students will look at some data that volunteers have collected and explain what the research shows and how it's important for leatherback conservation. The students will also consider how Crittercam can add to these studies, and they'll conclude by designing "slide shows" that illustrate information about leatherbacks and leatherback conservation.

Geography, life sciences

Standard 8: "The characteristics and spatial distribution of ecosystems on Earth's surface"
Standard 18: "How to apply geography to interpret the present and plan for the future"

Three hours

• Computer with Internet access

Students will

• read and view pictures about dangers to sea turtles, and answer questions about what they learn;
• discuss the reasons for threats to leatherbacks and what might be done to minimize these threats;
• read, view pictures, and answer questions about a volunteer vacation to study leatherbacks;
• analyze a chart of leatherback nesting;
• discuss how Crittercam might help expand leatherback research and conservation; and
• create "slide shows" illustrating information about leatherbacks and leatherback conservation.

Have students look at a map of leatherback nesting sites. Have them use another map to help them locate Costa Rica on this Internet map. Explain that the Pacific side of Costa Rica is also a major nesting region for leatherbacks and that they'll be learning about some studies that are being done in this area.

Have students go to Turtles in Trouble. Ask them to read this page and click on the four pictures at the bottom to learn about some of the dangers that sea turtles face. Point out that this page discusses species other than the leatherback but that the leatherback is among the most endangered sea turtles of all.

Ask students to describe the dangers discussed on the Turtles in Trouble pages and list them on the board.

Have students read the information at An Introduction to the Leatherback to learn about the leatherback and why it's so endangered. After they've read this page, ask them to add to the list on the board.

Discuss the following questions as a class, or have students discuss them in groups and then share them with the class:

• Why do you think people poach leatherback eggs? What incentives do they have for doing this? What incentives could they be given to stop poaching?
• Do you think anything can be done about the problem of leatherbacks drowning in fishing nets or lines? If so, what? What might be some obstacles to changing these practices?
• Do you think there's any way development (for tourism or private residences) might be able to occur without hurting leatherback nesting sites? Why or why not? What might be done?
• How might scientific research help the leatherbacks?

Have students learn about scientific research at Earthwatch's Costa Rican Sea Turtles Expedition page. Ask them to read about this volunteer vacation and to click on the map and photo gallery on the right side of the screen to learn more about the site and the research. Then discuss these questions as a class:

• What types of work do the volunteers do?
• How will this volunteer participation help leatherback conservation?
• Could it help with the poaching or fishing problems? With tourist or residential development? With public education? With any other things that need to be done to save the leatherback?

Ask students to pretend they are volunteers who have been gathering data on leatherback nesting in Las Baulas National Park in Costa Rica. They need to analyze the results they've gathered. Have them go to the Results and Progress page for the 2002-2003 season. The first chart on this page shows the numbers of leatherbacks that came onto the beach each week during this nesting season.

Ask students to answer these questions as they look at the chart:

• During which week did the most turtles come onto the beach?
• How many turtles came that week?
• During which month did the most turtles nest?
• Do the turtles come at random times, or is there a clear pattern to their arrival?
• How is this data helpful in understanding how to help save the leatherback? How might it be helpful to have this type of information for many years in a row?

Ask students to go to National Geographic's Crittercam Chronicles, read the introductory page, and then click on "Sea Turtles." Ask them how they think Crittercam might help continue the studies of leatherbacks. What information can Crittercam provide that can't be provided by the studies on the beach? Why is this information valuable for leatherback conservation?

Have students pretend to be Earthwatch volunteers who have just returned from studying leatherbacks in Costa Rica. Ask them to prepare slide shows about their trip and the research they conducted. (Earthwatch volunteers frequently do this after their expeditions.) Their slide shows can be text and illustrations on paper, or they can be multimedia presentations if you have more time and the capability.

The slide shows should explain why leatherbacks are endangered, describe the research that the volunteers conducted and the data they gathered, propose some things that can be done to help the leatherbacks, and explain how these actions can be valuable. Students should mention Crittercam in their slide shows—even though they didn't use Crittercam as Earthwatch volunteers, they should discuss how this technology might help in future studies of the leatherback.

Have students read this leatherback conservation resolution. Then ask them to imagine that they are conservation officials from Costa Rica who have been charged with implementing and enforcing laws to protect the leatherback turtles on the beach and offshore.

Have students list the difficulties they think they would face. Who might be opposed to the conservation plans? What types of money-related arguments might people make in response to these plans?

This material is based on work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. 0229817.

Any opinions, findings and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.

An Introduction to the Leatherback
Earthwatch: Costa Rican Sea Turtles Expedition
Las Baulas Leatherback Turtle Project
Leatherback Turtle Information
National Geographic: Crittercam Chronicles
National Geographic: Turtles in Trouble