Baby Sea Turtles in Costa Rica

While there are hatchings year round I was not lucky enough to see one during the short time I spent there. I did however have the misfortune of witnessing some stray dogs digging up an egg and attempting to eat the baby turtle. My friend was able to get the dogs away from the little guy but the damage was already done. He wasn't ready to hatch yet and the dogs basically ripped him from his shell. We tried getting him to the ocean but he wasn't strong enough to swim and eventually passed away. These dangers are a fact of life for these little turtles. From stray dogs to vultures to humans they have the fight of their life to make it to the relative safety of the open sea.

The following night I returned to see if I could spot any mother turtles coming ashore to lay their eggs. Again I wasn't lucky enough to find any while I was there but I did come across the shell of a mother who didn't make it. I'm guessing that after she laid her eggs she was too weak to make it back to the water before some stray dogs found her.

While some of the sea turtles are inevitably killed by predators a lot still make it past these obstacles and find themselves in the open ocean. Here they face many more challenges but hopefully they will thrive and someday return to this beach to lay their own eggs and complete the circle.