During the 2nd Flow of Make it Blue, Maiori received the visit of a turtle, who laid a nest on the beach. After several days of careful monitoring, 70 turtles were safely delivered to the sea. It was a wonderful experience for the residents of Maiori, volunteers and tourists, as everyone became involved in caring for the nest.

 

The Monitoring of the Turtle Nest

After 2 weeks from the last hatching, the volunteers of MAKE IT BLUE received a call. There had been sightings of small turtles on the beach! A new nest had been discovered during the last week of August. From  this moment on, volunteers have been monitoring the nest, guided by  zoological center Anton Dhorn and Domenico Sgambati from the natural reserve of Marine Area of Punta Campanella with the help of ENPA and local lifeguards. Every hour during the day, the volunteers checked the nest, in case there were new hatchings. And during the night, volunteers monitored it in shifts, taking care of the nest and protecting the newly born turtles.

 

The turtles of Maiori are of the species “loggerhead sea turtle” or better known as Caretta Caretta, which is mostly found in the Mediterranean but also around all over the world. The eggs are typically laid on the beach in an area above the high-tide line, around 40 cm below ground level. After incubating for around 45-70 days, hatchings dig through the sand to the surface, usually at night. They range in color from light brown to almost black. After hatching, they measure up to 5 cm, weighing around 20g.  The newborns go directly into the sea, swimming up to 20 hours until they are far from the coast. 

The turtles were born at night, mostly from 10 pm to 3 am. During these long nights, the volunteers got to experience the beautiful view of the Amalfi coast after sunset, listening to the waves and watching turtles emerge from the sand. And at sunrise, the fulfilling activity of releasing the turtles occurred. 

From this nest, during the nine-day-monitoring, around 40 new baby turtles hatched from beneath the sand, amazing both the volunteers, local people and the tourists in Maiori. The 7th of September 2024, the Anton Dohrn zoological center proceeded to open the nest, as no more hatchlings arrived in the few days prior. In total, 18 new turtles were discovered, which were released by Acarbio’s volunteers later that day.

This has been an unforgettable experience for our volunteers, as none of them have ever had such type of activities. It was also an honor for us to welcome in this world 100 and more new turtles that will make their way through the world’s oceans and seas.

 

 

CREDITS: Lali, Valentin, Mauro, Sara