Each summer, Chennai beaches host the gathering of nesting Olive Ridley sea turtles in the Tamil Nadu. Female sea turtles emerge from the surf to deposit eggs in sand nests and later, tiny hatchlings struggle from their nests and scramble to the ocean. Nearly all of this activity takes place under cover of darkness and relies upon natural light environment too often disrupted by the addition of artificial lighting.
Hatching
Nearly 60 days after eggs were placed in the nest, hatchling sea turtles tear themselves free of their papery eggshells beneath the sand and with periodic bouts of thrashing, make their way to the surface. At nightfall, as many as 100 hatchlings burst together from the sand and immediately scramble toward the ocean. Moving quickly from the nest to sea is critical for the survival of hatchling sea turtles.
Misdirected Hatchlings
On beaches where artificial lighting is visible, the hatchlings' important journey to the sea is disrupted. Hatchling sea turtles emerging from nests at night are strongly attracted to light sources along the beach. Consequently, hatchlings move away from their relative sanctuary of the ocean, toward hoardings and streetlights. Hatchlings so misled fail to find their way to the sea, often succumb to attacks by predators, exhaustion and drying up in the morning sun, sometimes even strikes by automobiles on nearby parking lots and roads. A single light left on near a sea turtle nesting beach can misdirect and kill hundreds of hatchlings. The video that’s a part of this posting shows how the baby turtles tend to move towards a simple torchlight.
Artificial Lighting Affects Nesting
Artificial lighting also affects the nesting of female sea turtles. Studies have shown that brightly lighted beaches are less frequently used as nesting sites. In addition, females attempting to return to the sea after nesting, like hatchlings, also can be lead astray by nearby lighting.
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