Higher temperatures bring more sea turtles to nest on Catalan beaches

Higher temperatures due to climate change are causing sea turtles to expand their nesting zones around the Mediterranean in search of cooler beaches. 

This has resulted in more nests appearing on the western coastlines of the Mediterranean Sea in places like Catalonia, far from the eastern shores where they have historically been more commonly found. 

At first it was thought that areas like Girona were too cold for turtles, but in the summer of 2023 a nest was discovered in Begur, Costa Brava. Now every beach in Catalonia could host a sea turtle nest. 

That is why it has become more important to spot sea turtles' trails in order to protect the eggs.  

These trails can be identified because they look like a tractor's trail, but they come from the sea and go back to the water. "Whereas any other vehicle drives parallel to the water," Irene Álvarez de Quevedo, researcher at Universitat de Vic's technological center, explained to the Catalan News Agency (ACN). 

If beach-goers spot one of these trails they should call the authorities. Álvarez de Quevedo highlighted that "people should stay calm and not move, because if the turtle detects any movement, it may go back to the sea and not nest." 

Sea turtles' nesting season usually lasts between June and October, and baby turtles start emerging from the eggs at the start of August until the end of October, after two months of hatching.  

Italy is currently the country with most sea turtle nests in the western Mediterranean, with 260 nests found this summer. 

Only six such nests have been found on Spanish coastlines so far; four in Valencia, one in Murcia, and the last in Tarragona, southern Catalonia.