The Minister of Environment Visits the Aquarium to Learn about the Evolution of Loggerhead Turtle Hatchlings
The Minister of Environment and Territorial Planning, José Fiscal, has visited the Seville Aquarium to learn about the progress of the 26 loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta) hatchlings being raised in these facilities.
The Minister of Environment and Territorial Planning, José Fiscal, visited the Seville Aquarium facilities this morning, accompanied by the General Director of Natural Environment Management and Protected Areas, Javier Madrid, the Director of the Doñana Biological Station (EBD), Joaquín Cerdá, and the Director of the Seville Aquarium, Natalia Izquierdo.
During his visit, he was able to learn about the progress of the 26 loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta) hatchlings, which were transferred there after the eggs hatched at the Doñana Biological Station (EBD), an institution under the Spanish National Research Council in Andalusia (CSIC). The hatching of these eggs represents a milestone for this threatened species, as they come from one of the few nests located on Spanish coasts in recent decades. Additionally, the care of these turtles is crucial so that, in the future, they can help establish the Almeria coast as a new territory for the species and, therefore, a new opportunity for the conservation status of the species worldwide.
Currently, in the eastern Atlantic, this species, highly sensitive to climate change, only nests significantly on a small island in Cape Verde, where systematic hunting of females and high nest mortality due to flooding or predation endanger its survival. Last July, thanks to a call from some fishermen, a female turtle was detected nesting on a beach near San Juan de Terreros (Pulpí, Almeria). To ensure their survival, the eggs (a total of 80) were transferred to the incubators at the Doñana Biological Station in Seville.
For almost 2 months, researchers from the EBD-CSIC intensively cared for these eggs, with a total of 30 eggs finally hatching. Almost a week after their birth, and once the small hatchlings were mature enough to be introduced into the aquatic environment, they were transferred to the Seville Aquarium facilities, thanks to a firm collaboration agreement between the three institutions for the conservation of the loggerhead turtle, and the promotion of its nesting in Andalusia.
Currently, 26 loggerhead turtle hatchlings are in perfect health in 3 quarantine tanks, under the daily supervision of the Seville Aquarium’s technical team. In a few weeks, the hatchlings will be divided and some of them will be transferred to the Andalusian Environmental Management Center (CEGMA) facilities in Algeciras (Cádiz), as dividing the brood in two significantly reduces the risk of mortality. The final objective will be their release on the same beach where they were found so that, once they reach sexual maturity, they return to spawn in the same place, due to their philopatric nature.