Baby sea turtles begin to hatch on Türkiye’s busiest nesting beach

ANTALYA

Thousands of endangered loggerhead sea turtle, widely known as Caretta caretta, hatchlings have begun emerging from their nests in Antalya’s Belek, the country’s most active nesting area for the species.

This stretch of coastline in the southern city has quietly become one of the most important nesting grounds in the entire Mediterranean for the endangered Caretta caretta.

Each summer, the same ancient ritual unfolds: Female turtles return to lay their eggs, and weeks later, their hatchlings emerge, scrambling toward the waves before the heat of the day sets in.

This year is no different. Since July 10, more than 5,000 hatchlings have already reached the sea.

Behind this large-scale effort is a long-standing conservation program, run by the Ecological Research Association (EKAD) and a local tourism investors association, in collaboration with the environment and forestry ministries.

Now in its 27th year, the program relies on a rotating team of volunteers, who spend their summer patrolling the beaches at dawn and dusk.

“It’s not just Belek anymore,” said Ali Fuat Canbolat, EKAD’s president. “We’re now monitoring 65 kilometers of coastline, and we have around 6,000 nests so far.”

According to Canbolat, that figure could climb past 7,000 before the season ends.

Belek’s sandy coastline may offer ideal nesting conditions, but it also comes with growing challenges, most notably, light pollution.

Hatchlings navigate toward the brightest horizon, which is naturally the sea.

But in areas lined with hotels, artificial lights often disorient the newborn turtles, leading them away from the shore and toward deadly obstacles.

EKAD has been working with hotels to reduce or modify lighting during the hatching season.

Some resorts have already adopted turtle-friendly practices, and officials hope this year’s results will help push for broader change.

Still, even under ideal conditions, most hatchlings won’t survive. Of the estimated 100,000 to 150,000 turtles expected to hatch along this coast by season’s end, only a tiny fraction will reach adulthood.

Predators, fishing nets and marine pollution all pose threats in the open sea.

“People hear 100,000 and think it’s a lot,” said Canbolat. “But statistically, only two or three out of every thousand survive to adulthood.”

Despite the odds, volunteers continue to show up with unwavering commitment. At EKAD’s Belek camp, up to 55 volunteers, 30 of them international, have joined the effort this summer.

For many, it’s the chance to protect a life that may return decades later, to the very same sands where their journey began.