Firefighters from the department learned that a loggerhead sea turtle, a protected species found in the Mediterranean Sea, was found laying a hundred eggs on Hero Beach on Saturday and Sunday night.
Around midnight, a passer-by alerted the fire department at Walras Beach, a seaside resort popular with tourists in the summer. With the support of the technical services of the municipality, they also placed protective markings around the nest. “It is a city beach. We made a closed perimeter around the nest with a diameter of 50 meters, with a barrier to passage. For two months, there will be no passage at this point of the beach for all services, including emergenciesOlivier Sébastien, director of technical services at Valras-Plage, explained to AFP.
A rare situation
“It is the first time that a nest has been found there, but this does not mean that these turtles, common in the Mediterranean Sea, never come. She must have been born on this same beach twenty or thirty years ago, because these turtles come to lay their eggs where they were born.– explained Cindy Capdet, one of the managers of CESTMed (Center for the Study and Protection of Mediterranean Sea Turtles), who came to observe and protect the nest during the day.
“It is rare to witness the laying and then be able to defend the nest. If no one had passed by this spot at this exact moment, the turtle would have left without anyone knowing about the existence of this nest under the sand.“, he added. The incubation period for sea turtle eggs is about two months. During this time, this part of the beach will therefore be protected from all traffic.
“We asked the municipality not to allow cars to pass along the beach, so as not to cause vibrations in the nest, which would disturb the development of the eggs.said Cindy Capdet. A camera is installed in front of the house. The temperature of the latter is also controlled because it has to fluctuate.”Between 24 and 34 degreesunder the sand “If the nights are too cold, we will consider moving the nest“CESTMed head warned.
The Loggerhead turtle, also called Caretta Caretta, can exceed one meter in length. It mainly lays its eggs on the central and eastern beaches of the Mediterranean Sea, rather in Greece, Tunisia or Italy. But the Marine Turtle Observatory of Metropolitan France has noted more regular breeding activity for this protected species since 2016. A phenomenon that would be due to the increase in the surface temperature of the French Mediterranean Sea.
Thus, sea turtle nests were observed in Fréjus, Var, in 2020 or even in 2018 in Villeneuve-les-Magellan, Hérault, CESTMed reminds AFP.
Source: Le Figaro
