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Yesterday, a neighbor of La Manga, Aurora Gil Bohorez, sighted from an eighth floor in one of the buildings overlooking the Canal del Estacio a large specimen of sea turtle swimming towards the MediterraneanThe turtle swam at high speed from the Estacio Bridge towards the Mediterranean Sea, between the boats that were crossing the channel at that time with the opening of the bridge, at 10 in the morning.

Despite the distance, Aurora had the curiosity and patience to take a few photos of the animal, and although they do not allow to assure the species, probably a loggerhead turtle, they have a great value considering that they were taken from the same house, and they suppose an important document, as they allow us to appreciate the considerable size of the turtle's tail, which indicates that it is an adult male.Precisely, on July 2, the news had reached ANSE of the sighting of a large specimen of sea turtle entering the Mar Menor through the Canal del Estacio, about which we had no further information.

Could it be the same turtle? Would it enter the Mar Menor in search of a female of the species to try to reproduce? Will it have fed within the Mar Menor during that time? Will it return to our coast next year in search of a mate or will it die entangled in some net or drifting garbage, or hit by a fast boat while dozing on the surface?At least, there are more and more people like Aurora Gil, who, shouting from the balcony, did everything possible so that the boats that were navigating the canal knew that there was a turtle swimming among them, to avoid being harmed.The only previous sighting known to ANSE so far of an adult male loggerhead sea turtle off the coasts of the Region of Murcia took place on July 1, 2006, south of the Sierra de La Fausilla, in Cartagena, in the case of a specimen of more than 70 cm of shell, captured and released immediately during an informative outing aboard the Else sailboat.Since then, ANSE was confident that spawning of the species would soon occur on a beach in the Region.

The first came in Calblanque last year, and the second has occurred this year in La Manga, although there were some failed attempts in a couple of years before.If this progression continues, ANSE believes that the beaches of La Manga could in the future become one of the areas with the greatest potential for loggerhead turtles on the coasts of the Western Mediterranean.

Recovering quiet coastal beaches and sandy areas without urbanizations or lighting on the beachfront, such as Caleta del Estacio, would be a great opportunity for the species, and for tourism, which could be found in the controlled and regulated observation of the sunsets and birth loggerhead turtles an unexpected "gift of Nature" for many political representatives and managers a few years ago, and it should not be the only one.

Source: ANSE