Baby Olive Ridleys head to sea from river mouth

Berhampur: Although several eggs of Olive Ridleys were destroyed in beach erosion last week, thousands of baby turtles have emerged from sandy pits and started their seaward journey near the Rushikulya mouth off Ganjam coast over the past two days.
“This year, mass hatchling began in time in the rookery and it is likely to continue for another four to five days. We are trying our best to ensure safety to the baby turtles,” said Berhampur divisional forest officer Amlan Nayak.
“As record number of Olive Ridleys laid eggs this time, we expect a huge number of baby turtles as well despite damage of hundreds of eggs in beach erosion, caused by high tides under the influence of cyclone, last week,” the DFO added. Around 100 to 150 eggs are laid by each female turtle.
Around 5.50 lakh Olive Ridleys had laid eggs on an island beach near Podampet between March 28 and April 4. The species then returned to the sea.
While local people have been teamed up with forest officials to protect the baby turtles, forest officials have fenced the area with mosquito nets. “We have fanced the entire area to prevent the entry of wild dogs, jackals and hyenas. Patrolling on the beach is also on. Volunteers collected few baby turtles, which got diverted from their path, in a bucket, and released them into the sea,” the DFO said.
The forest department has also asked the nearby industries, Gopalpur port and civic authorities of Ganjam to dim the street lights so that the species do not get drawn towards light. “We have also restricted visitors near the rookery,” the official added.