The world's largest colony of leatherback sea turtles has been identified by scientists, raising hopes that the giant creature may not be as endangered as previously thought. A new survey [PDF] has revealed that Gabon, west Africa, has between 15,730 and 41,373 female turtles using its nesting beaches.

Matthew Witt of the University of Exeter, who led the research, said: "We knew that Gabon was an important nesting site for leatherback turtles but until now had little idea of the size of the population or its global ranking. We are now focusing our efforts on working with local agencies, to coordinate conservation efforts to ensure this population is protected against the threats from illegal fisheries, nest poaching, pollution and habitat disturbance."

Concern for the leatherback grew after populations in the Indo-Pacific crashed by more than 90 percent in the 1980s and 1990s. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) lists the species as critically endangered globally, with numbers of females thought to be as low as 34,000, but detailed population assessments in much of the Atlantic, especially Africa, had not previously been carried out. The new research is published in the journal Biological Conservation.

The survey, led by the University of Exeter with the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), counted nests and nesting females during three nesting seasons between 2002 and 2007. They found 79% of nesting happens within national parks and other already protected areas.

Angela Formia of the WCS, said: "These findings show the critical importance of protected areas to maintain populations of sea turtles. Gabon should be commended for creating a network of national parks in 2002 that have provided a sanctuary for this endangered species as well as other rare wildlife."