Ocean Sentry
(From travels.ndtv.com)- David Pike, doctoral student at the School of Biological Sciences, University of Sydney, has found that two turtle species – the loggerhead (Caretta caretta) and green turtle (Chelonia mydas) – produce more babies when nesting on beaches undisturbed by people or development. “But, of course, we humans also love coastlines – they have the highest densities of human development anywhere on the planet. “Protecting the remaining natural beaches may help build numbers in the coming decade.” The data gathered on marine turtle reproductive output showed that female loggerhead and green turtles nesting on natural beaches produced more hatchling turtles per nest when compared to those nesting on beaches with permanent human development.
“Beaches are a favoured destination for tourists, but are also a critical habitat for nesting sea turtles, so we have a situation where the potential for negative effects on these species is extremely high.”
