After laying eggs on a deserted Phuket beach, a green sea turtle dives back into the turquoise-coloured waters of the Andaman Sea — a welcome sight for biologists who say the absence of tourists spurred the marine animal’s return.
The turtle’s nesting was spotted in November by scientists. In about two months, the 100 eggs will hatch and babies will slide towards the sea, guided by the moonlight.
Pre-pandemic, millions of tourists thronged to the white sand beaches of the southern islands, ferried by tour boats which dissuaded the skittish creatures from venturing ashore.
But with almost 20 months of covid travel restrictions in place, several different species of sea turtles have returned to nesting around…
