Mother turtle comes to Quy Nhon beach to lay eggs for the fourth time

According to the Community Organization for the Protection of Aquatic Resources in Nhon Hai Commune, green turtles (also known as green turtles – Chelonia mydas) 0.94 m long, 0.86 m wide shell, estimated to weigh more than 90 kg, entered the egg-laying site at around 0:00 on June 25. The turtle laid eggs about 13 m from the water’s edge, so the nest was decided not to move but to remain in the same position to ensure the highest hatching rate.

This is the fourth time turtles have laid eggs on the coast of Nhon Hai in the past month. Experts from the Binh Dinh Fisheries Department determined that each time the eggs were laid by one mother turtle, with a total of about 400 eggs. The first clutch of eggs is expected to hatch around July 21.

Mr. Nguyen Ton Xuan Sang, a member of the community organization, said that when he heard about the turtle laying eggs, two tourists from Nha Trang were with him. They were very happy and excited, so they took pictures and donated money to buy surveillance cameras to protect the turtles.

Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Nam, Vice Chairman of Nhon Hai Commune, said he is coordinating with the Department of Fisheries and a business to organize a communication campaign to protect sea turtle nesting grounds on the evening of June 27, to raise public awareness to join hands in conserving this species.

Ms. Bui Thi Thu Hien, a sea turtle conservation expert at IUCN, said that adult female turtles that are ready to reproduce can swim more than 600 miles. They often return to the exact place where they were born to lay eggs. After laying eggs once, the mother turtle does not swim far but forages near the shore, mainly in coral reef areas. Each turtle’s reproductive cycle is from 3 to 5 years. Each breeding season, the turtle will lay eggs from 2 to 5 times.

Previously, a green turtle weighing nearly 100 kg with a Malaysian tag swam to Bay Canh Island, Con Dao and laid 108 eggs. Con Dao is about 550 km from the nearest city in Malaysia, Kuala Terengganu.

Green turtle, commonly known as vich (Chelonia mydas), is one of seven species of sea turtles. Of the seven recorded species of sea turtles, there are: green turtles (green turtles –Chelonia mydas); big-headed turtlecaretta caretta); flat-shelled turtle (A depressed swimmer); age spots (Eretmochelys imbricata); leatherback turtle (Dermochelys coriacea), pineapple liver spots (đú (Lepidochelys olivacea)); and Kemp’s ridley turtle (Lepidochelys kempi).

All seven species are listed on Appendix I of CITES and all species (except the flat-shelled turtle) are listed on Appendix I and II of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS).