This summer, for the first time in 75 years, an endangered sea turtle was spotted nesting on a beach in Louisiana's Chandler Islands.
The tiny Kemp sea turtle was spotted by a crew member who was surveying birds but noticed the turtle's footprints, says Matthew Weigel, coastal resource scientist manager at the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. told his Associated Press.
"Louisiana was largely canceled as a nesting site for sea turtles decades ago, but this decision shows why the restoration of barrier islands is so important," he said. Press Release.
CRPA and LDWF flew over the island each week looking for more signs. During a walk on July 29th, Weigel found footprints of a chick on the beach. After following them, the crew finds a nest with two newly hatched turtles trekking out to sea.
"There was a high five," he told the AP.
Weigel said an aerial survey found 52 sets of his footprints, which experts identified as Ridley of Kemp, some of which were unaided "fake crawls." It is said that it was The CRPA claims more than 53 sea turtle crawls have been documented.
The CPRA, along with the LDWF, has been working with theRegional Management Board Implementation Group since May to restore the islands. I've been watching. It was devastated by the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico in April 2010.
According to the CRPA, no turtle hatchlings had been observed on the island since 1947, even before the spill.
Restoration groups hope that hatchlings represent an influx of nesting habitat for years to come.
"The discovery of successful nesting and hatching of sea turtles demonstrates the remarkable resilience of fish and wildlife resources, including endangered and endangered species, and the importance of these resources to protect humans and nature. "It's a big step forward that shows the importance of restoring our barrier islands," said Leopoldo Miranda Castro, regional director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
USFWS crawl survey data indicate that the species has been designated as a threatened species by the federal government. The loggerhead turtles that live there are also nesting on the island. Loggerhead turtles were found nesting in the Grand Isle, about 80 miles from the Chandler Islands, in 2015. At the time, it was the first time in over 30 years that sea turtles had been spotted laying eggs on the Louisiana coast. The
group hopes to find more nests in the Shandruur Islands. The peak egg-laying season for sea turtles is June to July, with young hatching occurring 50 to 60 days later.
Louisiana sea turtle news comes just weeks after beach crews discovered the first sea turtle nest in her four years on the Mississippi mainland. That's what I mean. Year.