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Why can plastic bags be dangerous for leatherback sea turtles?

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Illustrations of ten representative chelonians, including spiny softshell turtle, Galapagos giant tortoise, green turtle, alligator snapping turtle, Blanding's turtle, common map turtle, eastern box turtle, eastern painted turtle, spotted turtle, and eastern mud turtle, each labeled with its common and scientific name. A scale bar at the bottom shows size comparison. — turtle Turtles (order Testudines).

Plastic bags are dangerous for leatherback sea turtles primarily because these turtles mistake the bags for their natural prey, jellyfish.12

Because leatherback sea turtles feed primarily on soft-bodied, open-ocean organisms, they often cannot distinguish between a floating plastic bag and a jellyfish. When a turtle ingests a plastic bag, it can lead to severe health consequences, including intestinal blockages or asphyxiation, which can be fatal.123

Beyond the immediate physical danger of ingestion, plastic pollution poses a broader threat to marine life through the accumulation of non-nutritive, indigestible materials that can cause animals to starve. It is a fundamental ethical responsibility to protect vulnerable species and preserve marine ecosystems by reducing our reliance on single-use plastics and improving waste management practices.32