Twenty sea turtles return to the sea after completing the Head Starting programme

The turtles, which hatched on this beach in October 2025, have been raised under controlled conditions for almost a year to promote their growth and increase their chances of survival.

The Balearic Government’s Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Natural Environment released twenty sea turtles (Caretta caretta) this Thursday, 24th of September, at Cala En Calderer in Menorca. The turtles came from a nest discovered on the same beach in October 2025. For almost a year, the hatchlings have been part of the Head Starting programme, coordinated by the Directorate General for Natural Environment and Forest Management.

During this period, the turtles were raised under controlled conditions with the aim of supporting their development during one of the most vulnerable stages of the species’ life cycle and thereby increasing their chances of survival once released into the wild. At the time of release, the twenty turtles had an average weight of approximately 1.5 kilograms.

The story began on the 8th of October of 2025, when staff at the Vestige Son Ermità hotel reported the presence of a newly hatched sea turtle at Cala En Calderer. Marine wildlife specialists from COFIB, which operates under the Ministry, subsequently travelled to the area and located the nest.

They found twenty-five live hatchlings, four eggs that had not yet hatched and sixty-six eggs that had already hatched. The hatchlings were transferred to the IRFAP-LIMIA facilities in Mallorca to take part in the Head Starting programme, while the four remaining eggs were placed in an artificial incubator so that their development could continue to be monitored.

For almost a year, the turtles were raised under controlled conditions and closely monitored. Of the twenty-five hatchlings initially admitted to the programme, twenty successfully completed the process and reached the release stage.

The programme also involved the collaboration of the Cabrera National Park Visitor Centre, Seville Aquarium, CRAM Foundation, the CRAMA Recovery Centre operated by the Bioparc Foundation in Gijón, and Palma Aquarium Foundation. The coordinated involvement of these centres ensured the care, monitoring and development of the turtles throughout the rearing period.

As a preliminary step before their return to the wild, the turtles from the different collaborating centres were brought together at the Oceanogràfic in Valencia on the 22nd of September, where their sex was determined through endoscopy. The procedure confirmed that all twenty turtles are male. At that time, they had an average weight of approximately 1.5 kilograms.

Finally, on Thursday 24th of September, the twenty turtles returned to Menorca to be released on the same beach where they hatched. The collaboration of the Vestige Son Ermità hotel was essential throughout the process, as it provided technicians with access to Cala En Calderer, an area that is difficult to reach, both for locating the nest and for releasing the turtles.

The loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta) is a protected species and is classified as vulnerable under Spain’s List of Wild Species under Special Protection and the Spanish Catalogue of Endangered Species. The Balearic Government reminds the public that, if a sea turtle, a nesting female or newly hatched turtles are spotted on a beach, people should avoid any interaction with the animals and immediately call 112. This allows the appropriate protocol to be activated and ensures that the animals receive the necessary protection.