AMA Mexico

Nest relocation (which is to say, egg relocation) is a vital step in the preservation efforts of the biologists and volunteers of the Nuevo Vallarta Sea Turtle Preserve.

In the video above, biologist Hermilo Esparza measures the mother Olive Ridley sea turtle’s shell dimensions, then removes the freshly-laid eggs. (You can even see a few eggs drop from her oviduct.) The record the nest location, number of eggs, and other pertinent information. After patrolling the 8.5 mile stretch of beach, the eggs are reburied in nests within the corral, which protects the eggs from raccoons, poachers (who steal the eggs to sell them), as well as suffocation caused by the nest being trampled by people walking on the beach.

The brief video clip above shows the corral with hundreds of nests that have been relocated, during the summer of 2011. On the nest ID marker, “NN” = nest number (of the year), “NH” = number of eggs (numero huevos) in the nest, and date is in day/month/year order (14/7/11 = 14 July 2011). By this time in mid- to late–July, they tend to find from 20–50 nests per night. By September–October, that will climb to as much as 200 nests per night! Each nest typically Contains 50–100 eggs.