The appearance of a sea turtle in the Hon Mun Marine Protected Area suggests that the marine ecosystem of Nha Trang Bay is improving, with signs that sea turtles are returning to their birthplace to lay eggs.
On October 8th, the management of Nha Trang Bay announced that on October 4th, a sea turtle was spotted in the Hon Mun Marine Protected Area in Nha Trang Bay, Nha Trang City. The turtle was captured by a camera carried by a conservation specialist from the Nha Trang Bay Management Board.
Sea turtles are rarely seen in many marine areas, and the presence of sea turtles requires an abundant food supply and clean water quality in the region. Therefore, the appearance of the turtle in the Hon Mun marine area indicates that the ecological environment of Nha Trang Bay is improving, and the sea turtles are showing signs of returning to their birthplace to lay eggs.
According to the Nha Trang Bay Management Board, during its life cycle, a sea turtle experiences various habitats. During the breeding season, sea turtles return to coral reefs and seagrass beds to mate, build nests, and lay eggs. It takes a sea turtle 30 to 50 years to reach maturity, but only one out of every 1,000 hatchlings survives to adulthood. The migration process takes several months as the turtles both migrate and feed during the day, and at night, they rest in coral reefs and rocky areas.
In 2009, a mother turtle came ashore at Dam Tre to lay three nests of eggs, which were protected by authorities until the hatchlings returned to the sea. Authorities also discovered an adult sea turtle at Hon Tre in August 2015 and a nest of eggs at Dam Tre beach in June 2016. In 2022, the Nha Trang Bay Management Board proposed designating a protected area for turtles to lay eggs at Bai Bang Lon – Dam Tre to further conserve this marine species.
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Source: Vietnam Insider