While Cayman’s loggerhead turtle nesting season ended with a record-breaking 343 nests registered across all three islands, green sea turtles have not fared as well, with the Department of Environment noting a drop in the numbers for that species this year.
Out of a total of 474 nests for all types of turtles across all three islands, only 131 green sea turtle nests have been recorded for 2021 thus far, down from a record high of 353 for greens last year.
However, DoE Research Officer and Sea Turtle Programme Manager Jane Hardwick, in a recent interview with the Cayman Compass, said that dip in numbers is not a cause for concern.
High hopes for turtles
“The loggerhead nesting season is about to finish and the green nesting season is still continuing. So far we are similar to our 2018 numbers, which was a low year, but we did expect that, because last year was such a big, big year for them and it’s not the same females that come back every year. So we’re not really worried that it’s a low year,” she said.
The bump in loggerhead nests, she said, marks a “really good season” for the species as this year’s high number of nests has surpassed the 2017 record of 332.
“That’s really promising… In Cayman Brac, they’ve had a really, really good season,” Hardwick said. “They normally get between 40 and 50 nests a year… this year they’re over 90. So they’ve almost doubled what they usually have.”
The loggerhead season, she said, usually ends in August, but there are still some nests...
Read Full Story: https://www.caymancompass.com/2021/09/13/loggerheads-break-nest-record/
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