Turtle
In February 2011, the Tortoise and Freshwater Turtle Specialist Group published a report about the top 25 species of turtles most likely to become extinct, with a further 40 species at very high risk of becoming extinct. This list excludes sea turtles, however, both the leatherback and the Kemp's ridley would make the top 25 list. The report is due to be updated in four years time allowing to follow the evolution of the list. Between 48 and 54% of all 328 of their species considered threatened, turtles and tortoises are at a much higher risk of extinction than many other vertebrates. Of the 263 species of freshwater and terrestrial turtles, 117 species are considered Threatened, 73 are either Endangered or Critically Endangered and 1 is Extinct. Of the 58 species belonging to the family Testudinidae, 33 species are Threatened, 18 are either Endangered or Critically Endangered, 1 is Extinct in the wild and 7 species are Extinct. 71% of all tortoise species are either gone or almost gone. Asian species are the most endangered, closely followed by the five endemic species from Madagascar. Turtles face many threats, including habitat destruction, harvesting for consumption, and the pet trade. The high extinction risk for Asian species is primarily due to the long-term unsustainable exploitation of turtles and tortoises for consumption and traditional Chinese medicine, and to a lesser extent for the international pet trade.
Andaman Sea
The sea waters along the Malay Peninsula favor molluscan growth, and there are about 280 edible fish species belonging to 75 families. Of those, 232 species (69 families) are found in mangroves and 149 species (51 families) reside in seagrass; so 101 species are common to both habitats. The sea also hosts many vulnerable fauna species, including dugong ("Dugong dugon"), several dolphin species, such as Irrawaddy Dolphin ("Orcaella brevirostris") and four species of sea turtles: critically endangered leatherback turtle ("Dermochelys coriacea") and hawksbill turtle (Eletmochelys imbricata) and threatened green turtle ("Chelonia mydas") and Olive Ridley turtle ("Lepidochelys olivacea"). There are only about 150 dugongs in the Andaman Sea, scattered between Ranong and Satun Provinces. These species are sensitive to the degradation of seagrass meadows.