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Sea turtles return to Thailand's shores during pandemic
With almost 20 months of covid travel restrictions in place, several different species of sea turtles have returned to nesting around Phuket, an ultra-popular beach destination before the pandemic.
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This picture taken on November 23, 2021 shows a marine biologist looking at a sea turtle in a tank at the Phuket Marine Biological Center in Phuket. (AFP/Lillian Suwanrumpha)
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fter laying eggs on a deserted Thai beach, a green sea turtle dives back into the turquoise-coloured waters of the Andaman Sea -- a welcome sight for biologists who say the absence of tourists spurred the marine animal's return.
The turtle's nesting was spotted in November by scientists. In about two months, the 100 eggs will hatch and babies will slide towards the sea, guided by the moonlight.
Pre-pandemic, millions of tourists thronged to the white sand beaches of southern Thailand, ferried to the islands by tour boats which dissuaded the skittish creatures from venturing ashore.
But with almost 20 months of covid travel restrictions in place, several different species of sea turtles have returned to nesting around Phuket, an ultra-popular beach destination before the pandemic.
Between October 2020 and February 2021, 18 nests of leatherback turtles -- which can grow up to 400 kilograms as an adult and are the largest species of sea turtles -- were found in Phuket.
"Their nesting has improved in the last two years thanks to the absence of tourists, noise and light pollution," Kongkiat Kittiwatanawong, director of the Phuket Marine Biological Center, told AFP.
"We had never seen such a number in 20 years."
