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 final week — the primary 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 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.

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

“Each egg issues,” Marshall mentioned. "A lot of nesting habitat for the Kemp's Ridley has been lost to storms, excessive tide and predation, which is why it is important to transport these nests to an atmosphere the place they have the perfect probability for survival into maturity."

The species was almost lost in the Nineteen Eighties till intensive conservation efforts have been carried out on nesting seashores and thru fisheries management, in keeping with NOAA Fisheries. Bycatch — the intentional seize of non-target species while fishing — continues to be the biggest risk going through 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 anybody who finds a nest to stay at the very least 60 ft away and to call the Sea Turtle hotline at 1-866-TURTLE-5.

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