2024 Protect Sea Turtles Forever First Class Postage Stamps

Protect Sea Turtles Forever Stamps

For more than 100 million years, the ancestors of marine turtles have navigated the world’s oceans. Yet in less than a century, exploitation and habitat destruction have dramatically reduced their populations. The U.S. Postal Service honors efforts to protect these remarkable creatures with a set of six Forever stamps, each depicting a species that relies on U.S. coastal waters for foraging and migratory habitats at various stages of life. All six species are listed and protected under the Endangered Species Act.

The stamps feature:

• Kemp’s ridley (gray-green) — Photo by Doug Perrine

• Leatherback (black and white) — Photo by Rowan Byrne

• Olive ridley — Photo by Solvin Zankl

• Green sea turtle — Photo by David B. Fleetham

• Loggerhead (mottled orange-brown) — Photo by James D. Watt

• Hawksbill (brownish-yellow) — Photo by Claudio Contreras

The selvage includes an additional hawksbill sea turtle (photo by Reinhard Dirscherl), with the species names printed in white capital letters to the right, and the issuance title “PROTECT SEA TURTLES” in bold white type against a dark blue background to the left. Each stamp includes the common name of the species printed vertically in white at the lower left.

Among the oldest groups of animals on Earth, sea turtles spend nearly their entire lives at sea, coming ashore only to lay eggs — and in a few regions, to bask. They migrate vast distances, sometimes crossing entire oceans. In U.S. waters, sea turtles can be found from the Gulf of Mexico to New England, along the West Coast, in Hawaii, the Caribbean, and the South Pacific. Along the southeastern coast, most nesting occurs between Florida and North Carolina, home to the world’s largest gathering of nesting loggerheads each summer. Leatherbacks and green sea turtles also regularly nest on U.S. beaches, while hawksbill and Kemp’s ridley turtles nest in smaller numbers. Olive ridleys, though they do not nest in the U.S., forage in Hawaiian and southwestern waters, occasionally reaching as far north as Oregon.

Despite facing numerous threats worldwide, there are steps individuals can take to make a difference. Be a responsible seafood consumer by asking where and how seafood is caught, choosing options harvested in ways that do not harm or kill turtles. Consult sustainable seafood networks for guidance. These simple choices can help ensure a safer future for these extraordinary marine animals.