Newborn babies have begun to emerge en masse from nests laid by giant Caretta Caretta sea turtles on the beaches of the southern Turkish province of Mersin. At night (mostly) emerging from the sand, they head for the water's edge, guided by the light coming from the sea horizon. Scientists are calling on local residents and foreign tourists not to interfere with the turtles' journey to the sea and not to shine any light on them in any way, so as not to lead them astray.
As the professor of the Center for the Study told journalists sea turtles, Mr. Serap Ergene, turtles are extremely sensitive to light. If you direct a beam of light from the sea to the beach, the Caretta Caretta turtles will lose their way and instead of life-giving water, they will head towards land, where they will inevitably die.
The professor said that sandy beaches Mersin has discovered about 530 nests of turtles this year. Every year, many newborn turtles die because of dogs hunting for "treats", birds and overly curious tourists. The scientist understands that the hatching process is very interesting, but calls for tourists observe it from a distance, without approaching the turtles closer than ten meters and without illuminating them with powerful flashlights.
