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 one of the most endangered sea turtle species in the world.

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 Analysis.

As soon as the nest was found, it was delivered to an incubation facility at Padre Island National Seashore, Marshall said.

“Every egg matters,” Marshall mentioned. "A lot 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've the most effective likelihood for survival into maturity."

The species was almost lost in the 1980s till intensive conservation efforts have been implemented on nesting beaches and through fisheries administration, in line with NOAA Fisheries. Bycatch — the intentional capture of non-target species while fishing — continues to be the largest risk going through 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 remain no less than 60 ft away and to call the Sea Turtle hotline at 1-866-TURTLE-5.

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