100,000 sea turtles hatched in Turkey's southern coast

Photo: Mehmet Doğaner / Mersin - Doğan News Agency

As sea turtle nesting season ends, 100,000 babies have reached the turquoise waters of Turkey's southern coast, a Turkish scientist has announced.

Six beaches in Mersin province saw more baby sea turtles compared to last year, Mersin University Deputy President Prof. Dr. Gürol Emekdaş said Sept. 6, according to Doğan News Agency.

Sea turtles nest in June in the area and hatching starts in the next 45 days. "We've been conducting studies at Alata beach for the past 12 years. We've been observing around 200 nests each year. The number is 210 this year," Prof. Dr. Serap Ergene from Mersin University said.

Turkish professors observed the season's last hatchings. The highest number of hatchings were recorded in Kazanlı beach as 670 baby turtles successfully marched to the sea.

A team from the university cleaned the beach, which is a breeding site for green sea turtles.

Ergene warned that plastic bottles and bags should be kept away from all beaches, as sea turtles easily confuse them with jellyfishes and get suffocated while trying to eat them.