Several nights ago, I made a nocturnal visit to La Flor Sea Turtle Reserve on the Pacific coast south of San Juan del Sur. One of the world’s premier locations to see Olive Ridley turtles laying eggs, La Flor provides a protected site for these endangered animals. The Nicaraguan military is responsible for protecting the eggs from poachers who sell them to restaurants (mainly in the Capital Managua) which in turn serve them as a delicacy. Each night during the nesting season (July - January), turtles come onshore, dig a hole above the high-tide mark, and deposit approximately 100 eggs into the hole. Next, she covers the nest with sand using her rear flippers and proceeds to loudly pack the sand using her flippers and all her weight. Finally, she lumbers about 50 meters back to the sea and disappears into the whitewater only to return 2 or 3 times per year to repeat the nesting ritual at the same beach where she was born.
Today, at 10 AM in broad daylight, I encountered an Olive Ridley on the beach just after she finished laying her eggs. She nested adjacent to my hotel on Playa Coco a few kilometers from La Flor Reserve. Unfortunately, I only had time for a couple quick photos before a local Nicaraguan carried her back to the ocean and helped her into the water. (I believe he assisted her because my new friend Lug, a 140 pound Neapolitan Mastiff who lives at the hotel, followed me out to the beach.) It is extremely rare for turtles to nest during the day, so I was very lucky to be at the right place at the right time.
Thats awesome you got to see them during the day. We went at night, didnt have one of those amazing nights with hundreds of turtles unfortunately, but we got to see one lay its eggs, and we got to release babies into the water which was cool. I wrote about it also and posted my photos and videos at La Flor Sea Turtle Reserve – San Juan Del Sur, Nicaragua, unfortunately you cant use a flash so it was really tough to get good photos.
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