Have you heard that sea turtles come to lay their eggs each year in the same area where they were born? It is true! Puerto Vallarta is located on the beautiful Pacific Coast of Mexico in Banderas Bay Each year, sea turtles return to the area to lay their own eggs. The spawning season starts in June and lasts through December. Six of the seven sea turtle species are found in Puerto Vallarta. Keep reading below about sea turtle hatching in Puerto Vallarta!

Puerto Vallarta Sea Turtles

Each year, the sea turtles journey through the ocean waters until they reach Puerto Vallarta where they were born. The adult female sea turtles come back to the same location where they were both so they can lay their own eggs. June through December is when spawning season occurs, and from August and September months are the peak activity months. The baby sea turtles will start cracking and breaking their shells when they are ready to hatch. Once they have broken through, they will come up from under the sands in their nests, then crawl towards the beach very slowly. Sea turtle eggs are regularly collected from the nests, so they have a better chance of survival. There is never an exact number of sea turtles that come to Puerto Vallarta to lay their eggs as it changes each year. However, they are a very important element for the ecosystem in Puerto Vallarta, and they need to be protected.

Turtle release in Puerto Vallarta

Sea Turtle Eggs and Nests

When the female sea turtle figures out where she wants to lay her eggs, it will begin the incubation process. The eggs will be buried into the sand by the female sea turtle. They will stay there for approximately fifty day. Once the incubation period has ended, the baby sea turtle eggs will start hatching. Many of the sea turtle preservation teams in Puerto Vallarta will collect eggs from nests, then they will be taken to a protected beach and reburied. That way, they will be protected from natural predators and individuals. Natural predators in Banderas Bay include seagulls, skunks, herons, crows, raccoons, and foxes, and individuals will take the eggs to sell them for profit. More than 3,000 nests are expected this year in Banderas Bay. From 70-80 nests in the past have been registered in one night, and there are usually 100 eggs from one nest.

Puerto Vallarta Sea Turtle Hatching Time

The baby sea turtles will start cracking their shells when it is hatching time. Once they have broken through their shell, they will head towards the water crawling slowly. To increase the sea turtle babies survival, volunteers will collect the eggs to keep them in a safe place until they are ready to hatch. You can even view baby sea turtle releases on your vacation. Every night around sunset, the freshly hatched baby sea turtles will be taken to the sea and released. The nests in protected areas can be seen daily by the public. You will need to contact local conservationists so you can join in and watch the Puerto Vallarta sea turtle hatching time.

Right now, it’s Puerto Vallarta sea turtle hatching time! You can see this on a Puerto Vallarta vacation.

 

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