ESTRELLA DEL MAR SEA TURTLE SANCTUARY RESEARCH AND PROTECTION

Established in 1998, the Estrella del Mar Turtle Sanctuary was created with the single goal of protecting and conserving the sea turtle (Lepidochelys olivacea species). With 3.5 miles of beach habitat at Estrella del Mar, we wanted to make sure that our development lived in concert with the natural environment.

Every summer the Olive Sea Turtles return to their native beaches to lay their eggs. Turtles come from hundreds of miles away to this location to participate in a ritual that has occurred for thousands of years. Turtles are the last living representatives of the "Jurassic Period" and scientists can trace these creatures to the days of the dinosaurs. Unfortunately, many of the world's beaches are now full of developments as man continues to encroach on the turtle's habitat. This has significantly reduced the reproductive success of turtles to such an extent that sea turtles are in danger of becoming extinct.

To illustrate, there are eight existing sea turtle species in the world, all of them are listed on the "The Endangered Species List." Mexico has seven of these species and has made a commitment to protect these turtles.

At Estrella Del Mar, we have made a serious commitment to protect these creatures and the results from our efforts encourage us to become an example for future developments to follow.

What we do:

The summer months represent the breeding season and we are busy for the entire summer. The first turtles start arriving at the beginning of the rainy season. Once these turtles arrive the workers (usually volunteers) work around the clock. We try to locate the trails left in the sand from the turtles and follow them to the turtle's nest. If we successfully locate the nest we excavate, catalog, and then relocate the eggs to a protected nursery at our camp where the eggs are free from predators and man. The eggs are placed at the exact depth that the mother laid them and allowed to incubate for 45 days.

After 45 days has passed, we get to witness the miracle of life as these shiny, precious little creatures dig their way out of the nest, shake off bits of sand and open their eyes to their new world. During the 2010 season the sanctuary recieved approximately 1800 students as well as a large number of tourists and residents all interested in this process and preservation of life.

Normally, these hatchlings would immediately return to the sea; however we try to allow the baby turtles time to recover for a brief period of time before placing them back on the sand and allowing them to imprint their birth place and then make a dash for the water.

Since 1998, our efforts have resulted in more than a five fold increase in both the number of eggs being collected and the number of hatchlings For example, in 2002 we collected 39,115 eggs and hatched and released 29,014 baby olive sea turtles. For the 2010 season we collected an unprecedented 189,761 eggs and hatches and released 150,560 baby olive sea turtles.

During the off season, the camp is used to heal injured turtles and serve as an educational source for visitors and most importantly, local children. We have a number of seminars and work closely with local government agencies and schools.

To view research results, click here.

To read a documentary of field work, click here.