One green sea turtle can contain the equivalent of ten ping pong balls in plastic. Story by Xia (Alice) Zhu, Chelsea Rochman, Matthew Mazloff • 20m.

Green sea turtles mate in the protected waters of Buck Island’s lagoon in St. Croix—though the species is seeing big impacts from warming water. ... and jewelry boxes.

Between long-distance swims, Dellora the green sea turtle nests on SWFL beaches, where researchers have found her 12 times - and counting.

Green sea turtles are less common than loggerheads in the area. Dellora, originally tagged in 2015, has been observed returning to the area multiple times.

Female green sea turtles collectively contain about 60 tons of plastic debris globally, with an individual averaging 26.4 g—roughly the mass of ten ping pong balls.