Indigenous Community In Sonora Releases Record Number Of Sea Turtles This Year

[Judi Lynn]

By Kendal Blust
Published: Tuesday, October 27, 2020 - 4:35pm



Mayra Estrella Astorga
Olive Ridley sea turtle hatchlings make their way back to the Sea of Cortez from the shores of the El Desemboque in Sonora, Mexico.


This year, an Indigenous conservation group in Sonora released a record number of sea turtle hatchlings in its community on the Sea of Cortez. And it’s probably a result of the pandemic.

The group Tortugueros del Desemboque has released more than 2,250 Olive Ridley sea turtle hatchlings on the Mancha Blanca beach in the tiny seaside town El Desemboque — one of two Comcaac communities in Sonora.

In a normal year, the group might release 1,000 hatchlings, if they're lucky, said turtle conservation group coordinator Mayra Estrella Astorga, adding that in the coming weeks even more turtles may still hatch and make their way back to the sea.

"You could say this has been the worst year of my life, and in another way the best," said Astorga, who was sick with the coronavirus when the first sea turtles started making their way ashore early this summer to lay their eggs.

More:
https://fronterasdesk.org/content/1630564/indigenous-community-sonora-releases-record-number-sea-turtles-year

[dhill926]

1. fantastic...