Recovery Plan for Leatherback Turtles in the U.S. Caribbean, Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico
National Marine Fisheries Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services. 1992. Recovery Plan for Leatherback Turtles in the U.S. Caribbean, Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico. Atlanta, GA
Recovery plans delineate reasonable actions which are believed to be required to recover and/or protect the species. The original Recovery Plan for Marine Turtles was approved by the Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service, September 19, 1984. The plan included the loggerhead (Caretta caretta), green turtle (Chelonia mydas), hawksbill (Eretmochelys imbricata), leatherback (Dermochelys coriacea), and Kemp's ridley (Lepidochelys kempi). The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service share the responsibility for sea turtle recovery under the authority of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended. In an effort to better coordinate a recovery program for sea turtles, both Services recognized the need to reassess present conservation efforts and consider the new biological information available since approval of the original recovery plan. To accomplish this, the Services created a Loggerhead/Green Turtle Recovery Team, Leatherback/Hawksbill Recovery Team and a Kemp's Ridley Recovery Team. The Recovery Teams have developed separate species plans to provide greater focus and emphasize the uniqueness of individual species.