Late on May 22, conservation staff at Con Dao National Park discovered a green sea turtle nesting at Cat Lon Beach on Bay Canh Islet.
The stainless-steel tag was attached to its front left flipper. It bears the code PH6854 on the top side and PCP/EPAFI underneath, showing that it is part of the Philippines' sea turtle monitoring programme.
The green sea turtle tagged in the Philippines has laid eggs in Con Dao (Photo by Con Dao National Park)
The turtle measured 93 centimetres in length, with a carapace 84 centimetres wide. It dug a nest and laid 84 eggs on the beach. Conservation staff attached a tag to the turtle to monitor its future movements.
Con Dao is about 1,200 to 1,300 kilometres from Turtle Islands, the Philippines' most important nesting site for green sea turtles.
Home to seven marine turtle species, Con Dao, is the primary nesting site for around 90 percent of Vietnam's green sea turtles.
A turtle in Con Dao National Park ( Photo by Con Dao National Park)
From April to October each year, sea turtles journey back from distant oceans to Con Dao to breed. During this season, visitors taking canoes to the smaller islets often catch glimpses of turtles mating in the open waters.
A Con Dao National Park representative said that turtle mating can last up to 72 continuous hours. After mating multiple times over a week, males return to the sea to forage, while females revisit the same beach where they lay eggs to nest again.
In April last year, a mother turtle tagged in Malaysia also came to Con Dao to lay around 100 eggs. According to statistics, roughly 80 percent of sea turtles choose Bay Canh Islet as their nesting site.
Since mid-April, Con Dao National Park has launched sea turtle conservation tours to promote public awareness. The tours are led by rangers who are actively working on the islets to protect nesting turtles.
With the tours, visitors can explore rich island ecosystems, snorkel over coral reefs, help clean nesting beaches, and join rangers on sea patrols to protect and attract egg-laying turtles.
This summer, Con Dao National Park will launch small-group sea turtle conservation tours with 4-10 guests on each trip. Prices start at VND 11.7 million (USD 450.81) for 5 days, VND 15.7 million for 7 days, and over VND 20 million for 10 days.