Second Release of Caretta Caretta Turtles on the Beaches of AlmeríA
The Seville Aquarium has participated in the release of 13 Caretta caretta turtles in Pulpí (Almería).
About a year ago, a loggerhead turtle -Caretta caretta is its scientific name- chose the beach of Pulpí (Almería) to lay its eggs. A family of fishermen alerted the Equinac Association through the 112 emergency phone number, whose volunteers watched over the nest ensuring its survival for several days. After observing that the nest was in danger due to flooding, technicians from the Spanish National Research Council and the Ministry of Environment and Territorial Planning, responsible for sea turtles, decided to move the eggs and keep them under controlled conditions until they hatched at the Doñana Biological Station facilities in Seville. After the incubation period, the small turtles were taken for feeding, development, care, daily monitoring, and environmental enrichment to the facilities of the Andalusian Sustainable Management Center for the Marine Environment in Algeciras (CEGMA) and the Seville Aquarium.
During all this time, the turtles have received the necessary care from specialists at both centers. The goal was to ensure that the animals developed for a year, reaching the optimal size for their release and thus ensuring a higher survival rate. Some of these turtles were released last June on the same beach, specifically twelve, eight of those in the care of CEGMA and four of those cared for at the Aquarium. The thirteen turtles that continued to be cared for at the Aquarium during the summer were released yesterday on the Palmeras beach in Pulpí. Since yesterday, Toby, Cristina, Dora, Buru, Negrita, Vendetta, Bonita, Martina, Triana, Sanana, Morla, Jordan, and Miguel are now swimming in the Mediterranean waters.
In this release, five turtles have been released with transmitters, a project carried out by the Polytechnic University of Valencia, in conjunction with the University of Valencia and the CSIC, with the aim of collecting satellite data on the location of these animals. This is very valuable information that will allow following the steps of these turtles to propose the necessary measures for them to return to nest on the Almería coasts. Of these 5 turtles, there is one in particular, “Morla”, whose transmitter has been funded by a crowdfunding campaign organized by the Man and Territory Association.