Mon Repos Turtle Rookery

Our visit to the Mon Repos Conservation Park to see nature at work was an incredible experience.

The action takes place after  dark. Rangers take groups of visitors along the beach after activity has been observed. We were able to witness tiny turtles scrambling up from their nests which are about 50cm below the surface. It was amazing to see tiny heads popping up through the sand. The Ranger gathers all the clutchlings in a little enclosure until all have emerged from the nest. When the barrier is removed, the little turtles scurry down the beach to enter the water. Only one in a thousand will survive.

Each nest has around 130 eggs. This year 300 turtles have nested. All are tagged and their movements can be traced to far away places such as Peru and the Pacific.

The turtles come up to the beach to lay eggs Nov to Feb. The hatchlings emerge 60 days later. They will return to Mon Repos many years later. Females lay eggs when they reach 30 years or so.