The first turtle eggs of the season hatch on the Calabrian coast

| Fri, 07/31/2009 - 05:09

The fist nest of the Caretta caretta turtles hatched on the ionic coast of Calabria - one of the most important areas for turtles along the entire Italian coast.

The area is protected and taken care of by the Italian WWF.

The Caretta caretta turtles are under serious threat of extinction so a successful release of turtles into the sea is very important to the continuation of this particular species. More eggs are expected to hatch in September.

Over 20000 turtles are caught, accidentally, in fishers nets every year and a third of those loose their lives. The WWF is trying to raise awareness across Sicily, Calabria and Puglia about the issue in a hope to teach fishermen how to safely return turtles to the sea and treat them if they are injured by fish hooks. The WWf says that the initial response is positive and fishermen are paying more attention.