First Kemp’s ridley sea turtle nest of the year found at Padre Island
Texas’ first Kemp’s ridley sea turtle nest of the 2024 season was found at the Padre Island National Seashore last weekend, the park announced on social media, kicking off the annual international effort to conserve the highly endangered animals.
Kemp’s ridley sea turtles are primarily found in the Gulf of Mexico, with the Texas coast serving as a main nesting ground. The species is the smallest of sea turtles, measuring about 2 feet long and weighing as much as 100 pounds, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
They are also the most endangered of all sea turtle species and considered “critically endangered” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, a collection of government and civil society organizations seen as a global authority on conservation.
From the 1940s to 1980s, the Kemp’s ridley sea turtles suffered a 99.4% reduction in the number of nests, spurring a joint project between the U.S. and Mexico to protect the species’ nests, according to the Fish and Wildlife Service. That included establishing a nesting colony at Padre Island National Seashore, a national park near Corpus Christi.
The first Kemp’s ridley sea turtle nest along the Texas coast this year was created by a firsttime nesting sea turtle that laid 81 eggs, according to Padre Island National Seashore’s announcement. The eggs were collected by trained biologists and relocated for protected incubation; when they hatch in 42 to 56 days, the turtles will be released into the Gulf of Mexico, according to the park’s post.
The Fish and Wildlife Service urged visitors to Texas beaches to drive slow and alert to conserve the “imperiled” sea turtles. If a nesting turtle is seen, the agency asks visitors to quickly report the sighting to 866-TURTLE-5 (866-887-8535) and to remain at the site until a biologist arrives. If the visitor can’t stay until then, they are asked to mark the site by laying pieces of beach debris around the nest. Visitors should avoid disturbing nesting sites, the agency said.
Kemp’s ridley sea turtles, unlike many other species, nest during the day, making them especially vulnerable to predators and vehicle traffic on the beach. The turtles enter a trancelike state while nesting, meaning they can’t move to avoid hazards. They blend into the sand and often choose to nest in tire ruts, putting them at additional risk of being crushed and killed, according to the Fish and Wildlife Service.
Last year, 256 Kemp’s ridley nests were found in Texas. Since the launch of the international project in 1978, the largest number of recorded nests in Texas was 353 nests found in 2017. For context, in 1947, an estimated 40,000 Kemp’s ridley turtles nested on a stretch of beach near Rancho Nuevo, Mexico, the only known nesting site at the time, according to the Fish and Wildlife Service.
Nesting season for Kemp’s ridley sea turtles typically runs from late March through September, according to the Fish and Wildlife Service.
The beginning of nesting season “is not just a routine occurrence; it is a critical moment where each of us can play a pivotal role in safeguarding these extraordinary creatures,” the Turtle Island Restoration Network, a marine wildlife advocacy nonprofit, wrote in a blog post about the species. The organization keeps a count of turtle nest sightings on the Texas coast each year.