Death by plastic is still a shockingly common occurrence for turtles swimming in Maltese waters, a new statistic has revealed. If anything, in fact, it seems like the painful and heartbreaking way to go is only on the rise.

Speaking to the Times of Malta, Nature Trust president Vincent Attard has confirmed that plastic has already killed 20 turtles in Malta’s waters this year, with another 40 being found injured.

What’s even more worrying is the fact that this statistic is even bigger than last year’s, when a total of 15 turtles had died from plastic ingestion.

Mistaking plastic bags and other plastic-related litter for their favourite food, jellyfish, turtles often consume or entangled and strangled by this deadly debris dotting our seas. Indeed, just this week, a very rare (and very young) leatherback turtle had been found dead in Qala, Gozo after having sustained a massive infection. Two plastic bags and other debris were also found in the stomach of the eight-year-old animal which could’ve easily lived up to 100 years old had it not been for this shocking case of human intervention.

Nature Trust explained how the large, 190 kilo turtle had also been entangled in a drift net, causing damage to its front flippers while the plastic ingestion blocked its digestive system.

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David Grech Urpani

Lovin Malta's former Head of Content, Dave has been in journalism for the better half of the last decade. Prefers Instagram, but has been known to doomscroll on TikTok. Loves chicken, women's clothes and Kanye West (most of the time).