Endangered sea turtle nest found at Galveston Island State Park for the primary 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 first nest discovered on the park in over a decade.

The nest contained 107 eggs laid by a Kemp's Ridley sea turtle, which is likely one of the most endangered sea turtle species on the earth.

This was the primary nest found at Galveston Island State Park since 2012, according to Christopher Marshall, a professor of Marine Biology at Texas A&M and director for the Gulf Center for Sea Turtle Analysis.

As soon as the nest was discovered, it was dropped at an incubation facility at Padre Island Nationwide Seashore, Marshall stated.

“Each egg matters,” Marshall said. "A lot of nesting habitat for the Kemp's Ridley has been lost to storms, high tide and predation, which is why it is very important transport these nests to an atmosphere where they've the perfect probability for survival into adulthood."

The species was virtually lost in the Eighties until intensive conservation efforts had been applied on nesting seashores and thru fisheries management, in keeping with NOAA Fisheries. Bycatch — the intentional capture of non-target species whereas fishing — continues to be the largest threat going through Kemp's Ridley sea turtles.

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

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