Dead sea turtle found in Kissamos

On Saturday, a dead sea turtle (Caretta caretta) was found in Kissamos by the Kissamos beach cleaning team, washed up on Livadia beach.

The turtle was an adult female. It was probably in the area to lay her eggs and to produce new offspring. It didn’t carry any tags. It had evident damage on the head.

Female turtles come to nest on the sandy beaches of Crete, including Kissamos, around mid-May, and can lay up to 5 nests in the space of some weeks, well into August. After less than two months of incubation in the sand, little turtles are born from the eggs laid in the sand and go start their new life in the sea, normally from the end of July into October.

The event was reported to the Port Authorities and to Archelon, the sea turtle protection society.