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 last 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 likely one of the most endangered sea turtle species on the planet.

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

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

“Each egg issues,” Marshall stated. "Quite a lot of nesting habitat for the Kemp's Ridley has been misplaced to storms, excessive tide and predation, which is why you will need to transport these nests to an surroundings the place they have the best probability for survival into adulthood."

The species was almost misplaced within the 1980s until intensive conservation efforts have been implemented on nesting seashores and thru fisheries administration, based on NOAA Fisheries. Bycatch — the intentional capture of non-target species while fishing — continues to be the biggest risk facing 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 anyone who finds a nest to stay not less than 60 feet away and to name the Sea Turtle hotline at 1-866-TURTLE-5.

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