Please see article below
The following article was submitted by Baja Nomad "Oxxo"
Yes, the sea turtles are out in force on Baja beaches this time of year. To clear up the question above, the Spanish word 'tortuga' refers to either land or sea turtles. "Caguama" is the Spanish name for a particular species of sea turtle called the "Loggerhead" in English. In the Baja, the Loggerhead resides primarily in the upper SOC where it dines on its favorite food, Jellyfish.
There are a total of 7 species of sea turtles world wide. All 7 species are considered endangered. As recently as 30 years ago, as many as 1 million sea turtles were harvested in Mexico each year for commercial purposes. Today, they are a protected marine animal in Mexico. However, poaching is still a continuing problem. 4 of the 7 species are found in the Baja. They are (with the Spanish names):
Olive Ridley (golfina)
Loggerhead (caguama or perico)
Leatherback (laud or baula)
Green (verde or blanca)
The Olive Ridley is the smallest of all the species and the one that is most common in the Baja. The pictures in the post above are of an Olive Ridley sea turtle.
In the Los Cabos area, Grupo Tortuguera has designated three sites as official sea turtle hatchling sites. They are:
San Jose - Presidente Resort
Corridor - Casa del Mar Resort
San Lucas - Pueblo Bonito Sunset Resort
Eggs are collected from the area and taken to the nearest hatchling site. If you see a nesting turtle or run across a nesting site in the Los Cabos area, please notify one of the resorts above and they will come and collect the eggs and re-bury them at their protected site. Do not disturb the nest. The resorts have trained personnel who know how to move the eggs properly. The survival rate to maturity of a sea turtle varies between 1% to 25% depending on circumstances and location. We hope that the Hatchling Program in Los Cabos can achieve close to a 25% survival rate.
Here are some points of interest about sea turtles. The information will vary somewhat from species to species.
- Nesting season is from June1 to December 31
- A female can lay as many as 100 eggs in a nest
- Incubation period is 45 days, more or less
- eggs are buried 12 to 18 inches below the sand
- Once hatched, a male never returns to land, a female returns only to lay her eggs.
- a female reaches egg laying maturity in 3 to 7 years.
- a female will lay anywhere from every year to every three years.
- a female can lay as many as 4 nests in any one year
- a female is like a salmon, she always returns to the same beach where she was hatched to lay her eggs, even though she may travel as far as South America or Asia searching for food between laying seasons.
I volunteer at one of the Hatchling sites in Los Cabos. Last Monday night we had 45 Olive Ridleys hatched that were released to the sea. Last night, 80 Leatherbacks hatched and were successfully released. So we are hoping that we get 20 or 25 out of this number that will reach maturity. We are expecting another hatching tomorrow night. We have a total of 5 additional nests incubating right now to be hatched within the next month or so. We expect to gather eggs for several more nests between now and the end of the nesting season. Again, if you find a nest, contact one of the resorts above, contact Grupo Tortuguero, or contact me (by U2U) and I'll try to help you. The public is welcome to come, observe, and volunteer if you wish at our site. We had probably two dozen children here last night watching
the hatchlings who will become life long friends of sea turtles. Trained personnel will allow a child (and adult) to hold a hatchling before releasing to the sea.
If you run across a female on land, do not disturb her. Do not use bright lights (flashlights, flash on cameras, etc.) These lights will confuse and disorient her. The female needs to work in the dark and private to accomplish her job. She does her job best when observed at a distance without distractions or interference.
If you should be lucky enough to find some hatchlings making their way to the sea, DO NOT PICK THEM UP AND CARRY THEM TO THE WATER'S EDGE. It is natural for us to want to help them out, but they do best without our physical help. When they hatch, they will often have part of the yolk sack attached to them. Crawling across the sand (as much as 100 yards) scrubs off this yolk sack and makes the hatchling less appetizing to predatory fish once they enter the water. Also, the females fine tune their homing instinct by crawling to the water. Without this trek to the sea, a female does not establish her home destination and will not nest during her lifespan. What we can do is stand guard over the hatchlings to make sure that they all make it to the water without being picked off by predators while on land.
Finally, please be very careful with ATVs, horses, and dogs on the beach during nesting season. ATVs and horses can compact the sand and prevent a nest from hatching and dogs will dig up nests to eat the eggs.
The turtles appreciate all the help that Nomad amigos can give to them. They are a necessary asset to the natural environment and so much a part of the Baja experience.
Muchas gracias , Oxxo
You can visit Grupo Tortuguero at:
http://www.grupotortuguero.org/content/2/2/16.html 