Information About Sea Turtles
There are seven species of sea turtles in the world, five of which can be found in the Mediterranean. However, only two of them (Caretta caretta and Chelonia mydas) regularly nest in the Mediterranean.
Mating of C. caretta occurs a few weeks before the start of nesting, near the nesting beach or in special gathering areas. Tightly entwined pairs are mostly visible on the surface, although underwater splices can also be found.
The nesting season is usually from May to August. Spawning occurs mostly at night. We rarely see daytime nesting. Approaching the beach to lay eggs, the female occasionally raises her head and watches the beach. The female is very sensitive to external stimuli during this period and returns when disturbed. The female, which is very sensitive until the start of egg laying, is less affected by the stimulus at the time of egg laying. After the eggs are laid, the eggs are covered with moist sand removed from the nest by using the rear members and the sand is compacted. Then, while the female moves forward, she throws sand back with the front members and hides the nest pit. Following the completion of this process, the female quickly returns to the sea.
Sea turtles generally build a nest every 2-3 years. They may make more than one nest in the same nesting season. The time between two nestings in the same season is about two weeks.
Freshly laid sea turtle eggs are usually spherical, white, soft, covered with mucus, and the size of a ping-pong ball (about 40 mm in diameter and 40 g in weight). The number of eggs laid in the nests is about 100, and their incubation period is 1.5 - 2 months.
After breaking their shells for a while, they leave their nests helping each other in an average of 5 days. The hatchlings that come out of the nest head towards the sea by using the brightness of the horizon.
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