DALLAS (AP) _ Federal wildlife experts say they expect a strong 2010 spring nesting season for endangered Kemp’s ridley sea turtles along the Texas Gulf coast.
A Monday statement from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says that although about 60 percent of Texas nests are found on North Padre Island, nesting is expected the entire length of the Texas Gulf coast this season.
That’s after a record nesting season last season. The wildlife service statement says the turtle count last season was 197, the sixth annual increase in a row. That’s after only four turtles were found in 1995.
The wildlife service is asking for the public’s help in protecting what’s seen as the world’s most critically endangered sea turtle. The public is asked to report sea turtle observations by calling 1-866-TURTLE-5.