Another Sea Turtle Hatchling Success at Divjaka Beach

Τhanks to the continued  monitoring and conservation efforts of the RAPA staff (Regional Agencies of Protected Areas), Dr. Enerit Sacdanaku and MEDASSET, another sea turtle nest hatched successfully on Divjaka beach along the Albanian coastline.

Although it is known that important sea turtle populations feed and overwinter in Albania’s coastal waters, it was only in 2018 that the first officially confirmed hatched nest was recorded at Divjaka beach. Since then, other nests have been recorded and conservation efforts are being implemented at other sites, including within the Vlora region, along the Albanian coastline. The occurrence of these sea turtle nests in Albania are known as ‘sporadic nests’. They are of high scientific and conservation interest as it may indicate a possible shift in the nesting range of sea turtles towards the west and northern areas of the Mediterranean due to climate change.

MEDASSET’s lead researcher, Dr. Enerit Sacdanaku joined the excavation of the nest with the RAPA Staff, which hatched on August 15^th.  A total number of 106 eggs were found in the nest, with 79 of them having hatched successfully and 27 eggs not having hatched. This indicates a success rate of 74.5%. The nesting activity occurred on June 20^th and the incubation period was 50 days. Moreover, 6 hatchlings were found alive during excavation.

MEDASSET with Dr. Enerit Sacdanaku continue to collaborate closely with the RAPA staff, providing training opportunities  for the staff of the protected areas on the identification and management of sporadic nesting. Recently a training exchange visit was organised between Albanian Protected Areas staff and Spanish Protected Areas staff of Catalunya, in the framework of the project “Conservation of Marine Turtles in the Mediterranean Region”. The visit was organised by Generalitat de Catalunya, i Agenda Rural in collaboration with University of Barcelona and Vic university. Sporadic nesting, has been a known occurrence across the Spanish coastline for decades. During this workshop, the Albanian attendees greatly benefitted from the our Spanish friends sharing their expertise and valuable knowledge on monitoring and conservation approaches and research they conduct in relation to understanding this phenomenon.