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 last 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 among the most endangered sea turtle species on the earth.

This was the first nest discovered at Galveston Island State Park since 2012, according to 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 National Seashore, Marshall mentioned.

“Every egg matters,” Marshall mentioned. "Numerous nesting habitat for the Kemp's Ridley has been lost to storms, excessive tide and predation, which is why you will need to transport these nests to an environment the place they've the most effective chance for survival into maturity."

The species was almost lost within the 1980s until intensive conservation efforts were carried out on nesting seashores and through fisheries management, in accordance with NOAA Fisheries. Bycatch — the intentional capture of non-target species whereas fishing — continues to be the most important threat 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 anybody who finds a nest to stay at the very least 60 feet away and to name the Sea Turtle hotline at 1-866-TURTLE-5.

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