Thousands Of Costa Rica Sea Turtles Hampered By Tourists

Thousands of sea turtles looking to lay their eggs came ashore in Costa Rica. Their efforts were severely hampered by tourists trying to get photos of the event.

Crowds swarmed the Ostional Wildlife Refuge, in northwestern Guanacaste, and disrupted the nesting ritual for a number of olive ridley sea turtles, which are listed as a vulnerable or threatened species.

Costa Rican authorities have launched an investigation into the irresponsible and dangerous actions of the mob. The overwhelming crowd of tourists and locals prevented many of the turtles from depositing their precious eggs along Costa Rica’s Pacific shoreline.

The giddy onlookers in Costa Rica had very little knowledge that they were blocking the annual nesting ritual of the turtles. Many from the crowd placed small children on the turtles to take selfies. Other tourists touched the turtles, stood on top of their nests and snapped photos with flash cameras, according to the Union of Workers of the Ministry of Environment and Energy.

Costa Rica’s Ministry of Environment blasted the uncaring tourists. They are also investigating why the crowds were not held back and how to avoid such a massive mistake in the future. Although the turtles arrive in huge numbers each month, September and October are peak times for the nesting.

Costa Rica’s government allows a small amount of the eggs to be harvested. But due to the selfish actions of the amazed crowd, the number of turtles hatched will diminish. Reaching deep into the nests, locals are able to grab handfuls of the soft-shelled eggs and collect them in trash bags. Although Costa Ricans collect approximately 4.5 million eggs each year, this number is less than one percent of the total eggs laid on the Ositional beach.

Since 1959, droves of sea turtles have been coming ashore in Costa Rica. The mass nestings usually take four days. The residents are aware of the sea turtles and their ritual. But to hundreds of tourists looking to post pictures on social media, the happening was no more than a part of their vacation in Costa Rica.

This particular arribadas happened over a weekend, as reported by The Tico Times. This explained why so many tourists showed up. Refuge administrator Carlos Hernandez said he’d never seen such a huge crowd. Tourism companies have started increasing tours to see the turtles pull themselves along the Costa Rica shore and nest.

The Costa Rica refuge is guarded by only two park rangers. Last weekend they received help from only three National Police officers, who were unable to control the situation.

[Images via SITRAMINAE and Reuters]