This happened in Laigueglia third case of turtle nesting Caretta caretta registered in Liguria. On the night between 19 and 20 June around 00.45, a security guard on duty noticed a large specimen of turtle on the shoreline of Bagni Diana digging a hole to lay eggs.
After the specimen had finished laying, which lasted approximately 4 hours, and returned to the sea, the Coast Guard was alerted and cordoned off the area, notified the beach resort manager, and contacted the Delfini del Ponente association, which is already active in the area on the issue in agreement with the Ligurian Sea Turtle Group (GLIT)and the experts of the GLIT, which brings together the Aquarium of Genoa, the regional agency for the protection of the Ligurian environment – Center of the Sea and Biodiversity sectors, the University of Genoa – Distav and the Experimental Zooprophylactic Institute of Piedmont, Liguria and Valle d’Aosta with the The aim of managing and studying the nesting of this species, promoting awareness and information actions on the correct management procedure for this type of event.
This morning the technicians of the Acquario di Genova, coordinator of the GLIT, and Arpa Liguria Together to the Delfini del Ponente association they went to the site for an inspection, verified the position of the nest, 7.5 meters from the shoreline, confirmed the presence of the eggs, positioned a data logger to record the temperature, took a sample, through Arpa Liguria technicians of sediment, and conducted a training and awareness-raising action for all those present, including the bathroom manager and his staff, the Municipality of Laigueglia.
To date, two nestings have been recorded in Liguria: in Finale Ligure, on the beach of Castelletto di San Donato where, in September 2021, three small sea turtles of the species Caretta caretta, after the moment of hatching; in Levanto, on the free beach, where around 3 in the morning on 15 July 2022 a group of boys had witnessed the exit of a turtle specimen from the sea and two security guards, alerted by the boys themselves, had witnessed the deposition. In this second case, the GLIT was activated together with the Municipality of Levanto, the Carabinieri, the Cinque Terre National Park and the Life on the sea Onlus Association for the monitoring of the nest, its safety and its management, which lasted until the end September when the nest was opened by experts and 117 eggs were found which later proved to be infertile.
The species Caretta caretta
Typical of temperate regions, it nests in the summer season. The eggs are laid in the first summer months and the eggs hatch after approximately 40-60 days depending on the temperature. At the time of birth, the young measure approximately 5 cm and weigh on average 10-20 g.
The female reaches sexual maturity between 15 and 25 years and approaches the coast only to lay her eggs, generally on the beach where she was born. Typically hatching occurs at night, but it can happen that small turtles peek out from under the sand even in broad daylight, as happened in Liguria.
How should we behave in the event of sighting turtle tracks on the beach, finding a newborn turtle or a nest? Read the GLIT handbook.
