While it is officially sea turtle nesting season on Mustang and Padre Islands this is the closest I will get to one here on my local beach. In a bit of good news, there have been 32 nests of the rarest sea turtle species, the Kemp’s Ridley, spotted at Padre Island National Seashore thus far this year.

In an effort to assist the recovery of this endangered species, all the eggs are collected by PINS staff and incubated indoors, safe from beach activities (as beach driving is allowed in Texas). Around 45 days later, the hatchlings are released. After reaching sexual maturity (roughly 10-15 years) females return to their home beach to nest. She deposits 100 eggs into the sand and can nest multiple times in a season. PINS invites the public to some of the releases, I hope to attend one next month.