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 discovered on the beachside of Galveston Island State Park final week — the first nest found at the park in over a decade.

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

This was the primary nest found 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 Center for Sea Turtle Research.

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

“Each egg matters,” Marshall mentioned. "Plenty of nesting habitat for the Kemp's Ridley has been misplaced to storms, high tide and predation, which is why it is very important transport these nests to an surroundings the place they have the perfect likelihood for survival into adulthood."

The species was almost lost in the 1980s till intensive conservation efforts had been applied on nesting beaches and through fisheries management, in response to NOAA Fisheries. Bycatch — the intentional seize of non-target species whereas fishing — continues to be the most important threat facing Kemp's Ridley sea turtles.

Marshall mentioned the standard 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 ft away and to call the Sea Turtle hotline at 1-866-TURTLE-5.

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