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The swarms of six small loggerhead sea turtles in the waters of the Mediterranean are closely monitored thanks to satellite tracking. The Murcia Today website regularly updates its readers about the routes the six follow. For example, we now know that in two months the little ones have visited different corners of the Med: from Sardinia to Tunisia and from Catalonia to Algeria. Some of the animals covered more than 300 kilometers in the sea for the first two days.
No one could have foreseen that the arrival of a pregnant loggerhead turtle on Calblanque beach in August 2019 would stir so much. It was the first time in more than a century that a specimen of the largest sea turtle species on Earth chose the Costa Cálida to nest. Certainly a special event, but the eruption of enthusiasm and decisiveness will have astonished even the greatest animal lovers.
The event not only captured the imagination of many people, but also set in motion a series of events, all of which resulted in the 'Project Advantage' aimed at the survival of the baby turtles. In it, several agencies have joined forces to study the animals' behavior and hopefully learn how this endangered species can be greeted to regular pregnant visitors to the beaches in the province.
The six little ones, together with 15 brothers and sisters, are the surviving descendants of the mother. They were released into the sea a year after their birth. They now weigh just over a kilo and have reasonable chances of survival. Thanks to the work of an army of volunteers and two institutes in San Pedro and Valencia, 21 of the approximately 100 eggs have hatched. That is a great result. Normally, only 1 out of 1,000 loggerhead babies survives.
There are several reasons why the animals, which can reach a maximum weight of more than 500 kilos, are threatened in their survival. Marine pollution, plastic and aggressive fishing methods are just some of the enemies of these giant sea turtles. But the main enemy is man. Due to our activities, there are fewer and fewer beaches available for the animals to nest undisturbed.
The future of the Costa Cálida as a destination for pregnant loggerheads also looks healthy. Two new nests were discovered in August 2020. 45 babies are currently being raised with the aim of having them swim in the Mediterranean by September 2021. And maybe sooner, because these babies are growing much faster than the offspring of 2019. Fortunately, the enthusiasm of the Murcians has not dampened anything. The live streaming on YouTube of the moment the little ones hatched from their eggs also attests to this.
