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Ocean Calling

Ocean Atlas · Africa

Africa

Ghana

Estuary and lagoon beaches where olive ridley and leatherback turtles nest.

A beach near Accra
Beach near Accra · Photo: Barrowbob, Wikimedia Commons, CC0 1.0
Story only

Story only, for now. We love learning about this place and its ocean, so we share its story here and do not sell trips yet. Checked by Ocean Calling on 6 Oct 2026. Sources: Wildlife Division, Forestry Commission, Ghana (2015), State of the World's Sea Turtles (SWOT); Ghana gets Wildlife Resources Management Act, A Rocha Ghana; Cetacean strandings in Ghana, Wikipedia.

Why: Ghana's beaches at Ada Foah on the Volta estuary and the Muni-Pomadze Ramsar site host nesting olive ridley, leatherback and green turtles, mostly between August and March, and humpback whales pass the coast from about September to December. All sea turtles are protected under Ghana's Wildlife Resources Management Act 2024 (Act 1115), and the Wildlife Division trains fishing communities in ten villages to release turtles caught by accident. We support that local work by sharing the story and watching from the shore, and we never swim with, touch or chase the animals.

TurtlesWildlife watching

Why Ghana

Olive ridley, leatherback and green turtles nest in Ghana, mainly from September to January, around the Volta estuary at Ada Foah and the Muni-Pomadze Ramsar site. The main risks for turtles are fishing bycatch, hunting of nesting females and egg poaching.

Conservation-led. Ocean Calling guests never chase, touch or bait animals.

TanzaniaW. SaharaDem. Rep. CongoKenyaSudanChadBrazilFranceSenegalMaliMauritaniaBeninNigerNigeriaCameroonTogoGhanaCôte d'IvoireGuineaGuinea-BissauLiberiaSierra LeoneBurkina FasoCentral African Rep.CongoGabonEq. GuineaZambiaMalawiMozambiqueAngolaBurundiGambiaAlgeriaSaudi ArabiaMoroccoLibyaEthiopiaUgandaRwandaS. SudanAda Foah and the Volta estuary, GhanaMuni-Pomadze, Ghana

When to go

Sep-Jan. Timing changes by place and by animal, so check each place below.

We share this place as a story so you can learn. There is no Ocean Calling trip.

Our ethics check

Can we travel here ethically?

Story only

We tell the story. We do not sell a trip here.

Checked 6 Oct 2026. Places change, so we look again every year.

Sources for this check
The story

Where in Ghana

We share these places as stories and research notes. We do not offer or sell trips here.

Ada Foah and the Volta estuary

Story only

Where the Volta river meets the sea, with a community turtle programme.

Also seen: Sea turtles (nesting beaches, community programme)

When: Sep-Jan. Nesting for all species is mainly from September to January.

Muni-Pomadze

Story only

A protected wetland and beach, one of the few turtle nesting sites in Ghana.

Also seen: Sea turtles (nesting beach)

When: Sep-Jan. Nesting is mainly from September to January.

Animals

Animals recorded in Ghana

Tap an animal to learn how it lives, where it travels and how to meet it respectfully.

Olive ridley turtles nesting on Playa Ostional, Costa RicaOlive ridley turtleLepidochelys olivaceaSeen in 40 countries in the AtlasVulnerableLeatherback hatchling crossing the sand toward the seaLeatherback turtleDermochelys coriaceaSeen in 76 countries in the AtlasVulnerableGreen turtle resting on the reef, shell and head pattern in sharp detailGreen turtleChelonia mydasSeen in 103 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernScalloped hammerhead shark cruising in deep blue Red Sea waterScalloped hammerheadSphyrna lewiniSeen in 57 countries in the AtlasCritically EndangeredShort-finned pilot whale surfacing off Tenerife with the island behindShort-finned pilot whaleGlobicephala macrorhynchusSeen in 43 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernGreat barracuda cruising in open blue water, showing jagged teethGreat barracudaSphyraena barracudaSeen in 84 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernFraser's dolphin porpoising out of the waterFraser's dolphinLagenodelphis hoseiSeen in 18 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernMelon-headed whales leaping together through a splash of white waterMelon-headed whalePeponocephala electraSeen in 22 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernOceanic whitetip shark with pilot fish in sunlit Red Sea waterOceanic whitetip sharkCarcharhinus longimanusSeen in 43 countries in the AtlasCritically EndangeredSilky shark swimming near the surface in blue waterSilky sharkCarcharhinus falciformisSeen in 48 countries in the AtlasVulnerableBlacktip shark swimming in green water in the GalápagosBlacktip sharkCarcharhinus limbatusSeen in 49 countries in the AtlasVulnerableNurse shark swimming over a reef at Fernando de Noronha, BrazilAtlantic nurse sharkGinglymostoma cirratumSeen in 38 countries in the AtlasVulnerableWhitespotted eagle ray gliding over reef and sand in BelizeWhitespotted eagle rayAetobatus narinariSeen in 58 countries in the AtlasEndangeredBlue shark swimming in open blue water off the Azores with a diver in the backgroundBlue sharkPrionace glaucaSeen in 50 countries in the AtlasNear ThreatenedBlackchin guitarfish lying on pale sand beside rocks, with a shark-like tail and two tall dorsal finsBlackchin guitarfishGlaucostegus cemiculusSeen in 20 countries in the AtlasCritically EndangeredSpiny dogfish resting on the seabed at the Josephine Marie shipwreck, Stellwagen Bank National Marine SanctuarySpiny dogfishSqualus acanthiasSeen in 47 countries in the AtlasVulnerableDusky grouper underwater at Cabo de Palos, SpainDusky grouperEpinephelus marginatusSeen in 40 countries in the AtlasVulnerableDiver beside an Atlantic goliath grouper at Dry Tortugas National ParkGoliath grouperEpinephelus itajaraSeen in 25 countries in the AtlasVulnerableMilk sharkRhizoprionodon acutusSeen in 33 countries in the AtlasVulnerableTwo spotted ragged-tooth sharks resting under a rocky overhang at Aliwal Shoal, South AfricaRagged-tooth shark (sand tiger)Carcharias taurusSeen in 17 countries in the AtlasCritically EndangeredAtlantic weasel sharkParagaleus pectoralisSeen in 18 countries in the AtlasEndangeredCommon smooth-hound swimming just above a sandy seabed, with a slim grey-brown body and two dorsal finsCommon smooth-houndMustelus mustelusSeen in 35 countries in the AtlasEndangeredScopoli's shearwater skimming just above calm blue waterScopoli's shearwaterCalonectris diomedeaSeen in 37 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernReed cormorant perched on a low stump among tall reedsReed cormorant (long-tailed cormorant)Microcarbo africanusSeen in 27 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernClose view of a small-spotted catshark head, with dark spots, resting on the seabedSmall-spotted catshark (lesser spotted dogfish)Scyliorhinus caniculaSeen in 25 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernTope shark swimming in clear shallow water, seen from the sideTope shark (school shark)Galeorhinus galeusSeen in 25 countries in the AtlasCritically EndangeredAfrican darter with wings spread low over the water, droplets flyingAfrican darterAnhinga rufaSeen in 21 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernBluntnose sixgill shark swimming over the seabed at depth in the Gulf of MexicoBluntnose sixgill sharkHexanchus griseusSeen in 18 countries in the AtlasNear ThreatenedMarbled electric ray lying on a sandy seabed, spotted pattern visibleMarbled electric rayTorpedo marmorataSeen in 18 countries in the AtlasVulnerableBrown ray resting on a sandy seabed, with a blue-centred eyespot on each wingBrown rayRaja miraletusSeen in 18 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernKitefin sharkDalatias lichaSeen in 17 countries in the AtlasVulnerableVelvet belly lanternshark swimming just above a dark seabed, with a violet sheen along its flankVelvet belly lanternsharkEtmopterus spinaxSeen in 17 countries in the AtlasVulnerableNursehound resting on a rocky ledge among spongesNursehoundScyliorhinus stellarisSeen in 16 countries in the AtlasVulnerableCommon torpedo resting on sand, showing the dark spots on its round discCommon torpedo (ocellate torpedo)Torpedo torpedoSeen in 16 countries in the AtlasVulnerableSmooth lanternsharkEtmopterus pusillusSeen in 16 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernSharpnose sevengill sharkHeptranchias perloSeen in 15 countries in the AtlasNear ThreatenedAtlantic torpedo (electric ray)Tetronarce nobilianaSeen in 15 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernSpiny butterfly ray resting on a sandy seabed among seagrassSpiny butterfly rayGymnura altavelaSeen in 14 countries in the AtlasEndangeredSpinner shark swimming just under the surface of calm water, seen from aboveSpinner sharkCarcharhinus brevipinnaSeen in 14 countries in the AtlasVulnerableArrowhead dogfishDeania profundorumSeen in 13 countries in the AtlasNear ThreatenedSmooth butterfly rayGymnura micruraSeen in 13 countries in the AtlasNear ThreatenedBigeye thresherAlopias superciliosusSeen in 13 countries in the AtlasVulnerableCommon eagle ray seen from above, gliding over a rocky seabed with its long tail trailingCommon eagle rayMyliobatis aquilaSeen in 12 countries in the AtlasCritically EndangeredLongnose velvet dogfishCentroselachus crepidaterSeen in 11 countries in the AtlasNear ThreatenedLeafscale gulper sharkCentrophorus squamosusSeen in 11 countries in the AtlasEndangeredBignose shark swimming above deep-sea coral, filmed from a research submersible off North CarolinaBignose sharkCarcharhinus altimusSeen in 11 countries in the AtlasNear ThreatenedRough ray resting on a sandy seabed, with pale spots and eye-like marks on its discRough rayRaja radulaSeen in 11 countries in the AtlasEndangeredRoughtail stingray resting half-buried in wet sand at the water's edgeRoughtail stingrayBathytoshia centrouraSeen in 10 countries in the AtlasVulnerableFinetooth sharkCarcharhinus isodonSeen in 9 countries in the AtlasNear ThreatenedRound stingray resting on a rocky reef off La Palma, Canary IslandsRound stingrayTaeniurops grabatusSeen in 7 countries in the AtlasNear Threatened
Curious?

Why this is a story, not a trip

Read our ethics check above. If you would like to talk about it, Rocío is happy to explain.

Ask RocíoBack to the Ocean Atlas

Also in Africa
AngolaBeninCabo VerdeCameroonCôte d'IvoireDemocratic Republic of the CongoEquatorial GuineaGabonGambiaGuineaGuinea-BissauKenyaLiberiaMauritaniaMozambiqueNamibiaNigeriaRepublic of the CongoSaint HelenaSão Tomé and PríncipeSenegalSierra LeoneSouth AfricaTanzaniaTogoWestern Sahara

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