After 33 years, endangered Olive Ridley turtles reappear to lay eggs at Odisha's Eakakulanasi island

Endangered Olive Ridley turtles have reappeared at Eakakulanasi island in Gahirmatha marine sanctuary in Odisha for mass nesting after a gap of 33 years, an official said.

"The idyllic beach on the island had undergone sea erosion, leading to the beach profile getting truncated. However, the beach is currently elongated as it has started accreting since 2020. This has turned out conducive for turtles to turn up en masse to lay eggs," Assistant Conservator of Forests Manas Das said.

Das said the marine species had last appeared at the beach in 1992 when 3 lakh turtles had laid eggs.

"It's an exceedingly positive development in the turtle protection initiative that is underway under the stewardship of Odisha Forest Department," he said.

The profile of the Ekakulanasi beach, which was around 4 km long earlier, has now been elongated to 8 km following the natural process of accretion, which is a process of sediments returning to the beach. The nesting beach played host to 1.7 lakh turtles over the last two days, he said.

The beach, apart from Nasi-2 beach, has emerged as the favourite nesting site, the official said, adding 2.63 lakh turtles have emerged on Nasi-2 beach to dig pits and lay eggs.

The Olive Ridley turtles turn up in millions for mass nesting along the Odisha coast every year. Gahirmatha beach in Kendrapara district is acclaimed as the world's largest-known nesting ground of these turtles.

Apart from Gahirmatha, these threatened aquatic animals turn up at Rushikulya river mouth and Devi river mouth for mass nesting.

After egg-laying, the turtles leave the nesting ground to stride into the sea waters. Hatchlings emerge from these eggs after 45-50 days.

It is a rare natural phenomenon where the babies grow without their mother, the official added.