Here at OceanScubaDive, we have a great love for all aquatic and marine life. In the past, we’ve looked at various species and the international days that have been set aside to celebrate and raise awareness of them.
Although many of you who have read our other posts may find sharks and jellyfish difficult to love, we are sure that we can all agree on one thing – turtles (and indeed tortoises) are easy to be more than a little smitten with.
That is why we are going to look at why May 23rd is a special day – it’s World Turtle Day. We have already discussed some fascinating turtle facts in another post, and that is evidence in itself why turtles deserve their very own day.
How do you go about celebrating turtle day? We have a selection of the best turtle gifts that might prove to be helpful. We are going to discuss the how and the why in this post, but first, let’s get some background on this special day.
Table of Contents
When is World Turtle Day?
So when is World Turtle Day? World Turtle Day is celebrated annually on May 23rd. It was set as the annual day to celebrate World Turtle Day in 2000. The special day was established by the organization American Tortoise Rescue.
How Long Has World Turtle Day Been Celebrated?
The goal, as is the case with all special days and periods of time set aside for particular animals, was to help raise awareness and educate people about turtles and tortoises and the different threats they face to their habitats and how members of the public can help.
As well as celebrating how amazing turtles and tortoises are.
How is World Turtle Day Celebrated?
The event is celebrated in a variety of different ways around the world. For example, there are some who choose to celebrate World Turtle Day by hosting parties with a turtle/tortoise theme and by wearing full turtle costumes. Whereas some others, possibly even at the same parties, or to work or school, just wear something turtle-colored, like a green dress or top etc.
There are no hard and fast rules about celebrating this great day and what you choose to do for it will be different from others and will depend on your own situation and circumstances. If you have small children and a lot of friends and relatives with children, you could host a World Turtle Day party with them in mind.
You could have turtle-inspired games, art competitions and other fun activities or simply watch a selection of great turtle films (animated and fictional ones as well as factual documentaries).
Often the overarching theme of any celebration of World Turtle Day is raising awareness for their plight in the wild. This may move you to arrange to help at a conservation center or an organization that helps turtles in the wild.
Why Do We Celebrate World Turtle Day?
The above point leads us nicely back to why World Turtle Day was established in the first place. Like most internationally recognized days set aside to celebrate specific animals, it is designed with a two-fold purpose. Turtles are amazing creatures that deserve to be singled out.
More importantly, though, turtles, like many other creatures, are at risk in a number of ways. Most directly, they are hunted and killed for their shells, skin, meat and eggs. Their habitats are also being destroyed and they often are caught accidentally when people are fishing for other things.
So, when World Turtle Day comes around, how are you going to celebrate it?
