Endangered sea turtle nest discovered at Galveston Island State Park for the first 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 first nest discovered at 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 on the planet.

This was the first nest found at Galveston Island State Park since 2012, based on Christopher Marshall, a professor of Marine Biology at Texas A&M and director for the Gulf Center for Sea Turtle Research.

Once the nest was discovered, it was delivered to an incubation facility at Padre Island Nationwide Seashore, Marshall said.

“Each egg matters,” Marshall mentioned. "Lots of nesting habitat for the Kemp's Ridley has been misplaced to storms, high tide and predation, which is why it is important to transport these nests to an setting where they've the very best probability for survival into maturity."

The species was nearly misplaced in the Eighties till intensive conservation efforts were carried out on nesting beaches and thru fisheries management, in response to NOAA Fisheries. Bycatch — the intentional capture of non-target species whereas fishing — continues to be the most important threat going through Kemp's Ridley sea turtles.

Marshall mentioned the standard 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 a minimum of 60 feet away and to name the Sea Turtle hotline at 1-866-TURTLE-5.

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