Sea Turtle Strandings

Objective

The student will be able to calculate percentages and construct a pie graph from stranding data.

 Background

A number of sea turtles strand on Texas beaches each year. Most are found dead. Sea turtles face a number of hardships. An estimated 55,000 sea turtles drown every year. Still more are caught in dredges and crushed. Threats also originate from the land. Suitable nesting habitat is lost to seawalls, condominiums, and hotels. Artificial light from parking lots and shopping malls lures hatchlings away from the sea and toward the bright lights. Many become lost or fall victim to predators or tires.

Exercises

Sea Turtles stranded in Texas (January-Aug 2013)

Species # stranded
Kemp's Ridley             

66

Loggerhead

19

Leatherback

0

Green

19

Hawksbill

2

Unknown

1

  1. Calculate the percentage of strandings represented by each species.
  2. Draw a pie graph to illustrate the strandings.