Record birthrate of leatherback turtles in Costa Rica: WWF

0 Comments | AFP, May, 2008

SAN JOSE (AFP) — Nearly 900 endangered leatherback turtles were born at the Junquillal beach on Costa Rica's Pacific coastline in recent months thanks to community workers that scare off poachers and protect the eggs, the World Wildlife Fund for Nature said Thursday.

The leatherbacks are giant migratory turtles that swim great distances to nesting spots in the tropics. Their main nesting area in Central America is Playa Grande, also in Costa Rica, which is a protected zone.

Junquillal is an important leatherback nesting area but it is not formally protected.

However during this nesting season Junquillal "has probably become the second most important beach for leatherback turtles to nest in Central America, due to not only the number of nests but also the...