The central African country of Gabon is providing an invaluable nesting ground for a vulnerable species of sea turtle. During a survey of nearly 600 km of Gabon's coastline, scientists from the University of Exeter uncovered the Atlantic’s largest breeding colony of olive ridley turtles. Study results estimate that there could be up to 9,800 turtle nests per year, compared with around 3,300 in French Guiana and 3,000 in Brazil.

The new Gabon marine protected area network complements an existing terrestrial protected area system anchored by 13 national parks created in 2002.

When Gabon's President Ali Bongo Ondimba declared that the African nation was protecting almost one-quarter of its Atlantic Ocean territorial waters, home to dozens of species of threatened whales, dolphins, sharks and turtles, the worldwide reaction was positive and instantaneous.

Gabon has declared nearly a quarter of its territorial sea off-limits to commercial fishing. The central African nation is home to a variety of threatened species including great hammerhead sharks, manta rays and whale sharks.