Green Sea Turtle

Photo: Debra Baker · CC BY

Green turtles are abundant inside the Funafuti Conservation Area, grazing on seagrass beds in the lagoon and resting on the outer reef slope. As ecosystem engineers, they maintain the health of seagrass meadows through intensive grazing that keeps blades short and promotes faster regrowth — without regular grazing, seagrass becomes senescent and less productive as a nursery habitat for juvenile fish and invertebrates.