Udupi: In an encouraging development for marine conservation, an Olive Ridley turtle nesting was reported at Someshwar beach in the Byndoor range for the first time in nearly five years. Forest officials relocated the eggs to a safer location, leading to dozens of hatchlings successfully reaching the sea.Providing details, Byndoor range forest officer (RFO) Jyothi KC told TOI that the Olive Ridley nest was spotted on Jan 6, between 9.30 and 10pm. Upon closer examination, officials found that the nesting site was vulnerable to tidal inundation. The nest was located barely five metres from the high tide line, and hence forest officials, along with experts from Reef Watch Marine Conservation, decided to shift the eggs to the nearby Tarapathi beach in the next 24 hours.A total of 104 eggs were carefully relocated, and the site since is being closely monitored since then, added JyothiThe RFO said the department did not anticipate nesting activity at Someshwar beach. “This was probably an early nesting. Also, the temperature was cooler during the early days. Generally, the incubation period for the eggs, is between 45 and 60 days. In this case, the hatchlings emerged after completing 60 days,” she said.So far, over 70 hatchlings have successfully crawled into the sea. Of these, 56 hatched on Saturday night, while the remaining followed on Sunday night. More hatchlings are expected to emerge in the coming days. Meanwhile, the forest department intensified daily patrolling along sensitive coastal stretches in Byndoor to monitor turtle nesting activity. Last year, officials recorded 320 eggs from three nesting sites in the region, including one at Maravante and two at Tarapathi. So far, in this season, only one nesting site was recorded at Someshwar that was relocated to Tarapathi.
