Dangerous journey of world's oldest ânavigators' sea turtles

HATAY, TURKIYE - SEPTEMBER 2: A newborn green sea turtle struggles due to a disposed plastic cup before reaching to the sea on Samandag Beach in Hatay, Turkiye on September 2, 2021. Sea turtles, an ancient species that appeared 110 million years ago, are still critically endangered due to increasing environmental pollution despite all conservation efforts. Anadolu Agency photojournalists captured sea turtles, whose life is turning into an increasingly dangerous journey because of environmental pollution and tracked their challenging life journey for 4 months. The work was created with data collected over two years from coastal areas in Turkiyeâs Mugla, Hatay, Adana, Antalya, Istanbul, and Rize provinces. The visuals of the project were recorded during four months of shooting in the nesting area of sea turtles between the Iztuzu coast in western Mugla province and the Samandag coast in southern Hatay province. Sea turtles' most eastern home is considered to be the 'Samandag Beach' in Hatay. Conservation studies in this region are conducted by the Samandag Sea Turtle Research, Conservation and Monitoring Center (SACEVKO). One out of every three turtles found dead on Turkey's Mediterranean coast dies from plastic wastes. Total of 32,200 baby sea turtles died due to plastic and waste on the beach in 2021. (Photo by Sebnem Coskun/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)