On 3 March, 79 baby turtles hatched from their eggs on Phuket’s Nai Yang Beach. The strongest 43 have already been released into the wild, whilst the other 36 are still under the care of officers from the Phuket Marine National Park Operations Center (PMBC).
The next nests expected to hatch in Phuket will be at Sai Kaew Beach on 20 March and at Mai Khao Beach on April 7. Visitors are requested to contact the PMBC at +66 76 679 134 if they spot a turtle nesting on a local beach to ensure egg protection.
The leatherback sea turtle is the largest of all living turtles. The biggest leatherback ever reported was 2.6 m long with a curved carapace length of over 2.5 m.