Matthew Ware's Image

From a distance the beach scene looked appealing – blue skies, white sand and a rare Kemp’s ridley sea turtle. But a closer look revealed the horrible truth – the turtle was dead, having suffered a neck wound from the strap of an abandoned beach chair. For Matthew, this photograph exemplifies the most serious consequence of the debris that ends up in our oceans.

This is the most endangered species of sea turtle. Once targeted for their eggs and meat, they were also frequently caught as by-catch by shrimp trawlers. Today their nesting sites are protected and trawlers must use turtle excluder devices. Despite this they are still under threat from injuries caused by discarded fishing gear and other waste.