What used to be an exceptional event is becoming more and more common. And it is because of the warming of the waters of the Mediterranean Sea turtle traditions are changing. at least one fifteen nests sea turtles Spotted on beaches off the coast of Spain in recent weeksThe total of up to a hundred spawns in Italy, which has a record of nesting in a single season off the coast of the western Mediterranean.
This has been confirmed by a consortium of universities from Vic, Barcelona and Valencia Polytechnic, which started work on the InGeNi-Caretta project in collaboration with the University of Valencia and the Doñana Biological Station. Efe.
Funded by the Ministry of Ecological Transition, the Biodiversity Foundation and the European Union, this project seeks to find out why this colonization is happening and make it easier to make decisions about the phenomenon. the increase in the temperature of the Mediterranean due to climate change and the sands on the beaches.
According to biologists, climate change is changing the turtle’s nesting site caretta carettataking it to regions where it hasn’t done it before means new challenges for biodiversity management in these regions.
The last decade has seen an increase in the frequency of tadpole turtle nests on the western Mediterranean coast, whose survival depends on the viability of the hatched young on the spawning beaches.
According to project biologists, This emerging colonization takes place in areas where human occupation is high.This is why proper management is necessary to support the success of these spawnings, which coexist with human presence, as on the coast of Spain.
“The recent emergence of this colonization process implies that it is necessary to develop new capacities in recent years on behalf of all representatives involved, both in the scientific field and in public administrations,” said those responsible for the project.
Spawning reproduction in the Spanish Mediterranean
The first sea turtle nest detected on Spanish soil this season appeared on the beach of Can Pere Toni in Palma de Mallorca at the beginning of June.
Within a few weeks, more nests were detected on the beaches of Catalonia, the Community of Valencia, Murcia and Andalusia.
In Catalonia, the presence of three of the nests in the Ebro Delta may indicate the increasing importance of this natural area as a new nesting point.
A notable fact of this 2023 is that the nest detected on the coast of Sa Riera in Begur (Girona) is the most southerly date ever found in the Iberian Peninsula.
“Assuming all this activity a huge challenge to monitor networks, local and regional governments According to project members from the University of Vic, in each case, both in Catalonia and in the rest of the Spanish coastal communities, the relevant academic institutions that have enabled recently developed protocols for their conservation and the collection of scientific data, and” .
“This increase in nesting activity on the Spanish coast is in line with what is happening in other parts of the western Mediterranean. Paradigmatic example Italy: close to 100 nests detected in the first weeks of the season. Members of the InGeNi-Caretta project have raised more than 50 percent compared to previous years in regions such as Campania.”
The marine biologists, who will conduct a detailed study of the potential for fitness, noted that the results of InGeNi-Caretta “will enable the improvement of conservation measures for the species, particularly in relation to nesting activity on the Spanish Mediterranean coast.” from the beaches of the Spanish coast for the nesting of sea turtles.
WHAT SHOULD WE DO IF WE SEE A TURTLE ON THE BEACH?
first of all don’t bother himLet her move calmly on the sand and lay her eggs. if it’s night No need to take photos with flash Do not use any light. one has to call 112 now so the specialist staff take responsibility for the situation and manage the nest. It is also necessary to avoid communicating the truth through social networks, because a sea turtle lays eggs. not To show It’s a natural action that people should be invoked for, but requires calm and tranquility.
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