Endangered sea turtle nest discovered at Galveston Island State Park for the first time in a decade – Houston Public Media

A nest of endangered sea turtle eggs was found on the beachside of Galveston Island State Park last week — the primary nest discovered at the park in over a decade.

The nest contained 107 eggs laid by a Kemp's Ridley sea turtle, which is without doubt one of the most endangered sea turtle species on the planet.

This was the primary nest discovered at Galveston Island State Park since 2012, in accordance with Christopher Marshall, a professor of Marine Biology at Texas A&M and director for the Gulf Middle for Sea Turtle Analysis.

Once the nest was found, it was dropped at an incubation facility at Padre Island National Seashore, Marshall mentioned.

“Each egg matters,” Marshall mentioned. "A lot of nesting habitat for the Kemp's Ridley has been lost to storms, high tide and predation, which is why you will need to transport these nests to an atmosphere the place they have one of the best probability for survival into maturity."

The species was nearly lost within the Nineteen Eighties until intensive conservation efforts have been applied on nesting seashores and through fisheries management, in response to NOAA Fisheries. Bycatch — the intentional seize of non-target species whereas fishing — continues to be the biggest threat facing Kemp's Ridley sea turtles.

Marshall said the typical nesting season for the Kemp's Ridley sea turtle runs between April 1 and July 15. He urged anyone who finds a nest to remain at least 60 feet away and to call the Sea Turtle hotline at 1-866-TURTLE-5.

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