Yep, it’s green. U.S. federal fishery managers took the first steps toward possibly allowing the hunting and eating of Hawaii’s beloved green sea turtles, known as the “honu,” by responding in favor of a formal petition from anglers and hunters who want to remove the threatened sea turtle species from U.S. Threatened Sea Turtles in Hawaii Losing Ground to Rising Oceans . Specifically, the agencies noted that drift gillnets and longlines are a major threat to green sea turtles, which are often caught as bycatch. Out of the seven types of sea turtle, the Hawaiian green sea turtle is the most common turtle in Hawaii. - PacificStock - M Swiet Productions / Design Pics Canvas Print Endangered and threatened species; identification and proposed listing of eleven distinct population segmentsof green sea turtles (Chelonia mydas) as endangered or threatened and revision of current listings. Both species are considered endangered, but the Hawaiian hawksbill population is estimated at less than 30 nesting turtles. FR 80:15272-15337. Green sea turtles were added to the list of protected species in 1978 and were considered threat-ened, prohibiting anyone from harvesting honu. Van Houtan KS, Hargrove SK, and Balazs GH. Particularly in Hawaii, numbers have risen drastically. “We are pleased to see that Honu’s remain, rightly, listed as ‘threatened’ under the Endangered Species Act,” said Todd Steiner, executive director of Turtle Island Restoration Network. Leatherbacks & Green Sea Turtles. Hawaiian green sea turtles, or honu, are native to Hawaii. Specifically, the agencies noted that drift gillnets and longlines are a major threat to green sea turtles, which are often caught as bycatch. The ESA designation successfully enabled significant green sea turtle population increase. Sea turtles are found throughout the oceans of the world and all species are threatened or endangered. SeaTurtles.org, Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), Center for Biological Diversity (the Center), Conservation Council for Hawaii (CCH), For the Fishes (FTF) and Earthjustice oppose the ESA delisting of the Hawaiian green sea turtle because it is premature and sea turtles face continued threats to their existence. First documented in Key West, Florida in 1938 in a green sea turtle, fibropapilloma has now been reported in six of the seven species of sea turtles globally. Endangered Species Act (ESA) protections. The green turtle (Chelonia mydas) is listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act and is found throughout the main Hawaiian Islands. “We are pleased to see that Honu’s remain, rightly, listed as ‘threatened’ under the Endangered Species Act,” said Todd Steiner, executive director of Turtle Island Restoration Network. They are the largest hard-shelled sea turtle in the world, reaching lengths of four feet and weights over 300 pounds. 2010. This makes Hawaii the endangered species capital of the world. Of the three native Hawaiian species, the most common is the green sea turtle. Hawaii’s endangered species include over 30 types of birds. or the Honu. But nearly one quarter of the nation’s endangered species of animals, birds and marine mammals are in Hawaii. This means that a virus like fibropapilloma has circumtropical distribution and is now considered a pandemic. It is believed that Hawaiian Green Sea Turtles can live up to 80 years and most don’t reach sexual maturity until they are about 25 years old, sometimes taking twice that long.