Antalya sea turtles: 40,000 hatchlings reach the sea

More than 40,000 Caretta caretta sea turtle hatchlings have successfully reached the sea at Kızılot Beach in Antalya, Turkey. This season, conservation teams identified approximately 1,600 nests along the 26-kilometer coastline, with about 70 percent of these nests successfully producing hatchlings.

The Sea Turtle Monitoring and Protection Project is led by Dr. Ali Fuat Canbolat of Hacettepe University and the Ecological Research Association (EKAD). A team of volunteers has been working in the region for five years, monitoring nests using GPS technology and conducting daily checks at 5:00 AM to track the hatchlings' progress.

Experts note that the survival rate for these turtles is extremely low, with only one or two out of every 1,000 hatchlings expected to reach maturity. Once mature, these turtles typically return to the same beach to nest after 15 to 20 years. The hatchlings face several terrestrial threats, including predators like seagulls, plastic waste, and artificial lighting from nearby facilities, which can disorient them and lead them away from the ocean.