Cozumel, Q.R. — The island of Cozumel has recorded its first sea turtle nest of the 2026 season. On April 24, authorities located a loggerhead nest on the eastern side of the island, making it the first this year.
Noel Rival, Cozumel’s Sub-directorate of Ecology, carried out the marking of the sea turtle nest as part of the island’s permanent conservation actions. The nest was located within the San Martin Turtle Camp, who monitors the eastern shores to locate, mark and check nests.
Prior to the start of the season, a training course was provided with the support of biologist Héctor González, in coordination Noel Rival, with the objective of strengthening protocols for the care, management and protection of the nests that are registered this year.
“The San Martín Turtle Camp has already registered the first loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta) nests in Cozumel, thus marking the formal start of the 2026 nesting season on the beaches on the eastern side of the island,” he said.
People visiting Cozumel beaches on the eastern side are being asked to respect the red stakes that indicate the presence of a sea turtle nest.
Rival says people should avoid approaching or handling the stakes, not drive vehicles on the sand and keep pets away, in order not to put the incubation process at risk.
During the 2025 season, 271 loggerhead sea turtle nests were marked across the island of Cozumel.
