Endangered sea turtle nest discovered 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 final week — the primary nest found on 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 earth.

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

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

“Every egg issues,” Marshall mentioned. "Numerous nesting habitat for the Kemp's Ridley has been lost to storms, excessive tide and predation, which is why you will need to transport these nests to an surroundings where they've the most effective probability for survival into adulthood."

The species was almost lost within the Nineteen Eighties until intensive conservation efforts were implemented on nesting seashores and through fisheries administration, based on NOAA Fisheries. Bycatch — the intentional seize of non-target species while fishing — continues to be the most important threat going through Kemp's Ridley sea turtles.

Marshall mentioned the everyday 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 a minimum of 60 feet away and to call the Sea Turtle hotline at 1-866-TURTLE-5.

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