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The green turtle has been safely recovered from the verge of extinction in what scientists are labeling a significant conservation achievement.

Previously heavily pursued for culinary purposes, its eggs as a luxury food and ornamental carapaces, the long-lived creature saw its numbers decline and has been listed as threatened since the eighties.

Presently, thanks to decades of international preservation actions - from securing eggs and letting go babies on shores to reducing incidental catching in fishing nets - new data shows green turtle groups are bouncing back.

Protection Efforts Yield Encouraging Outcomes

Green turtles are among the most substantial varieties of sea turtles, named for the green-colored color of their body fat, which stems from their plant-based diet.

They are one of 7 surviving types of marine turtles, two of them are highly at-risk.

"Sea turtles are representative and charismatic species... they encourage the public," he noted. "Hundreds of thousands of volunteers have been working for long periods to try and look after these creatures, and undoubtedly, it has produced results."

The protection measures encompass watching beaches, securing mother turtles and their offspring at nesting sites, freeing young into the ocean, community information to minimize the species being harvested for consumption and young, and implementing measures to prevent the animals being captured in commercial nets.

New Threatened Animals List

The most recent Red List of at-risk species was disclosed at a major international conservation congress.

The unenviable registry now contains 172,620 varieties, of which nearly 49,000 are threatened with extinction.

Animals are transferred between categories when recent statistics shows variations in their individuals, living space or risks.

If a animal becomes more at risk - for instance, its individuals decline or its environment is damaged - it may be shifted to a more endangered category such as At-Risk; if it improves thanks to protection measures, it may move to a lower-risk category like Improved Status or Reduced Threat.

Ongoing Challenges

The marine turtle has been moved from At-Risk to Reduced Threat. Nevertheless, despite present recovery, the species are still significantly under their former individuals due to former overexploitation and continuing threats like marine harvesting, environment degradation and environmental shifts.

In areas like certain regions, less baby turtles are emerging, showing that preservation actions are still desperately necessary.

Additional Animals Face Rising Risks

The revision to the at-risk list brought bad news for further species, including polar seals, which are progressing nearer to disappearance as ocean ice is disappearing to global warming.

The hooded seal has shifted from At Risk to Critically Threatened, while the Arctic species are now Becoming Endangered due to diminishing ocean ice.

Northern marine mammals need ocean ice for mating, relaxing and eating, and its loss puts their existence at danger.