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 discovered on the beachside of Galveston Island State Park final week — the first 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 this planet.

This was the first nest discovered at Galveston Island State Park since 2012, in response to 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 brought to an incubation facility at Padre Island Nationwide Seashore, Marshall said.

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

The species was almost misplaced in the Nineteen Eighties until intensive conservation efforts were implemented on nesting seashores and through fisheries management, in keeping with NOAA Fisheries. Bycatch — the intentional capture of non-target species while fishing — continues to be the largest risk dealing with 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 at the least 60 toes away and to name the Sea Turtle hotline at 1-866-TURTLE-5.

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