TURTLES OF THE SEA.
Six of the world's eight species of marine turtles nest on Costa Rica's beaches.One of the most visited places to see the turtles laying eggs and the hatching of the baby turtles is the National Park of Tortuguero.
Tortuguero National Park, is the major nesting site in the western Caribbean. From mid June to through September, thousands of green turtles swim from their feeding grounds in the Gulf of Mexico the Miskito Coast and Venezuela to lay their eggs at the 22-kilometer stretch of beach of Tortuguero.
But turtles also come to the Pacific coast of the country. Places like Nancite, in Santa Rosa National Park, and Ostional Wildlife Refuge, are visited by the Olive Ridley from july to december. The Leatherback turtle is the largest in the world, reaching an average of 700 kg and a length of 6 feet. It nests at Playa Grande, near Tamarindo, from october to march. Loggerheads, Hawksbills, Ridleys, and even leatherbacks, can be seen in lesser numbers at other beaches.
Costa Rica beaches are now protected, and access to some is restricted during nesting season. But even though nesting sites are protected there is still human exploitation of turtle eggs and turtle meat, continuing to be a threat for their survival. Humans are not the only predator for sea turtles. Dogs, raccoons,and coatis, also dig up nest sites to eat the eggs. Night Herons, crabs,vultures, frigate birds, also await for the hatchlings on the beach. For those that make it to the ocean, barracudas, and sharks are there, waiting close to shore.
If you come to Tortuguero during the nesting or hatchling season, it is very important that you follow the Park´s rules when visiting the beach. In the last 2 years locals have found a way to dig the nests at night to get the baby turtles in a plastic bag. Sometimes the babies are still in the eggs and they die, others suffocate in the plastic bag. Early next morning, these people approach the tourists offering to show them a hatchling nest. When the tourists agree, another man will dig a whole and throw the baby turtles from the plastic bag and then they cover them with sand suffocating many of them. The happy tourist then give the a nice tip without knowing the harm than has been done. PLEASE if some one on the beach wants to show you a nest, say NO. No one can know when a nest is ready .After struggling in a plastic bag for hours, the baby turtles will not have enough energy to survive its first hours in the ocean. Save the babies by saying NO.
Nesting turtles are extremely shy, very sensitive to lights, movements, and noise. If a female gets scared it will go back to the sea without laying her eggs.
During the nesting season, is common to see the turtles mating at a distance from the shore This event could take hours. and each female may be courted by as many as 8 males during the season. .The male turtle holds himself on top of the curved shell of the female using its claws on its front flippers to hold onto her shells during mating.
Between dusk and dawn, female turtles will drag themselves with difficulty across the beach looking for the perfect spot above the high tide to lay the eggs. Then with her hind flippers she will carve a nest, 3 feet deep, where she will lay between 50 and 200 eggs depending on the species.The turtle eggs are soft and white and the size of a golf ball. After covering the nest with sand and smoothing the surface she makes her last strenuous effort back to the ocean. The whole process takes approximately one hour and during this time the turtles are completely exposed to many dangers on the beach like jaguars and humans. A female turtle normally comes ashore an average of six times each season . Ridley turtles come ashore en masse( "arribada").
The incubation time for most species is 45 to 70 days. The sex of the hatchling is determined by the temperature of the sand: males are predominantly produced in cooler sand;higher temperature will produce more females.
They are not seen again until they appear as adults. Only 2% of the baby turtles will make it to adulthood.Maturity may range from as early as three years in hawksbills; 12 to 30 years in loggerheads; to 20 to 30 years in green sea turtles. A sea turtle has an 80-year lifespan.
The governments of Nicaragua and Costa Rica have established, national parks and biological reserves where sea turtles forage and nest. Local economics is no longer based on turtle harvests, but on tourism which has become an example of responsible tourism compatible with the conservation of the environment. More than 15,000 visitors are expected each year.
I hope you enjoy your visit to one of the most amazing destinations in Costa Rica!
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