Loggerhead turtles are landing on the beaches of the Pyrénées-Orientales, on the west of France's Mediterranean coast. In mid-September, the commune of Saint-Cyprien, 15 kilometers from Perpignan, saw the birth of some 60 baby turtles measuring seven to eight centimeters and weighing barely 100 grams – a first in the area. Under the watchful eyes of staff from the Gulf of Lion Marine Park and municipal employees, the baby turtles came out of their shells and immediately headed for their natural habitat: the sea.
Having been found in the Atlantic, the Indian Ocean and on the coasts of Greece and Turkey for thousands of years, this protected species, which can measure up tp one meter, seems to have become increasingly fond of the French Mediterranean coast. Eleven nests have been spotted along the coast, as far east as the Var region, five of which gave rise to births this summer, known as "emergence". In 2023, 14 nests were counted. Italy, with 500 nests, and Spain, to a lesser extent, have also seen the number increase.
"Sightings have skyrocketed on the French coastline since the summer of 2023, whereas previously they were seen at sea but very rarely on beaches," explained Sidonie Catteau, a marine biologist based in Antibes and coordinator of the French Mediterranean Sea Turtle Network (RTMMF). For the past two years, at the request of the National Museum of Natural History in Paris, she has been coordinating a program aimed at observing this phenomenon, in conjunction with marine park managers and staff from the French Office for Biodiversity (OFB).
In Saint-Cyprien, fences and barriers were installed for a few weeks around a modest rectangle of sand to prevent predators, such as dogs and birds, from attacking the eggs buried by the turtles on the night of July 25. "This is an example of coordination between scientists, local authorities and tourists," said Thierry Auga-Bascou, the local adviser for the nature park and an OFB officer, for whom "the loggerhead sea turtle is a 'control' species for the need to take care of biodiversity".
In nearby Agde and Narbonne, two nests, both a stone's throw from the town's harbors, have also been protected since the beginning of August in anticipation of possible hatching. "We had trained our officers to spot their tracks, and it happened at the beginning of August. Since then, we've been very careful," explained Renaud Dupuy de la Grandrive, director of marine environment management for Agde. In this nest, around 100 eggs (the average number for an adult female) could hatch by mid-October.
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