Conservation convention adoption provides limited conservation benefits: The Mediterranean Green turtle as a case study

SummaryThe adoption of international, conservation legislation is assumed to provide total protection for species, however, evaluation of the actual level of protection offered is lacking. Data collected from the CITES and Bern convention archives, published and grey literature were analysed to attempt to provide a quantitative assessment of the conservation benefits for the Mediterranean Green turtle. CITES provides a high degree of conservation benefit, however, the level of conservation benefit gained from adopting Bern remains unclear. The political will to enact CITES was greater than observed for Bern adoption. The Mediterranean Green turtle population remains in decline despite the existence of much conservation legislation, which raises fundamental concerns over the effectiveness of current legislation and the need to address other factors to ensure the future of Green turtle in the Mediterranean.