LOS CABOS, MEXICO—The Sheraton Hacienda Del Mar Golf & Spa Resort and The Westin Resort & Spa, Los Cabos are participating in Los Cabos’ sea turtle conservation program and allowing guests to experience the nesting of endangered Olive Ridley sea turtles on the resorts’ sandy shores.
Last year, the Sheraton Hacienda del Mar and The Westin Resort & Spa, Los Cabos oversaw the release of more than 4,000 sea turtles. Guests were able to participate in the releases, as well as learn about the nesting process and protection of the Olive Ridley turtle throughout the incubation and hatching season.
Named for the olive-green color of its heart-shaped shell, the Olive Ridley turtle lives in all tropical and warm waters of the world. No matter where she travels throughout the world during her first 15 years, an Olive Ridley returns to nest on the beach where she hatched. To nest, a turtle digs a hole for her eggs using her rear flippers, deposits up to 100 eggs, gently covers the hole with sand, and reenters the ocean, never to visit the nest site again.
Education is Important
“Every year, the resort community in Los Cabos comes together to protect the sea turtles, which is vital for species survival,” said Renato Mendonca, general manager of the Sheraton Hacienda Del Mar Golf & Spa Resort. “By teaching as many of our guests as possible about the turtles, we hope they will participate in our conservation efforts so that Olive Ridleys continue to return to lay their eggs in the future.”
In nature, only one out of 1,000 turtle hatchlings survives, and this number dwindles more when humans hunt sea turtles for food or leather, or eat the eggs. It’s estimated that humans kill as many as 35,000 sea turtles each year in Mexico alone. Extinction would irreparably damage both the marine and beach ecosystems, and disrupt the food chain.
“Today’s children will be responsible for tomorrow’s turtles,” said Pablo Flores, general manager of The Westin Resort & Spa, Los Cabos. “It used to be that 10 million Olive Ridley turtles nested on the Pacific coast each year, but decades of poaching have decimated their numbers. If we educate our kids now about the turtle nesting, they can help the population grow again.”
In support of the sea turtle recovery program sponsored by the Los Cabos municipal government, Gabriel Olvera, the technical coordinator for the Red de Protección a la Tortuga, has trained several employees at the Sheraton Hacienda Del Mar and The Westin Resort & Spa, Los Cabos to assist in the monitoring and release of the turtles. Eggs will be carefully collected and transferred to the Campamento Tortuguero Don Manuel Orantes, a nursery where they’re held for the 45-day incubation period. The hatchlings will then be returned to the nesting area and released at sunrise or sunset. This year’s hatchlings are expected to arrive in July through November.
Go to the Sheraton Hacienda Del Mar Golf & Spa Resort and The Westin Resort & Spa, Los Cabos.
