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 last week — the first nest discovered at the park in over a decade.

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

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 Heart for Sea Turtle Research.

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

“Every egg issues,” Marshall mentioned. "A lot of nesting habitat for the Kemp's Ridley has been misplaced to storms, high tide and predation, which is why it is important to transport these nests to an setting the place they have one of the best probability for survival into maturity."

The species was virtually lost in the 1980s until intensive conservation efforts have been applied on nesting beaches and through fisheries management, in accordance with NOAA Fisheries. Bycatch — the intentional capture of non-target species whereas fishing — continues to be the largest menace facing 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 anyone who finds a nest to stay a minimum of 60 ft away and to name the Sea Turtle hotline at 1-866-TURTLE-5.

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