REPORTAGE
It is exceptional and inexplicable! In a few days, two sea turtles laid eggs on the Var coast, precisely in Fréjus and Saint-Aygulf. "24 hours apart, having two spawns on the same territory is exceptional in itself", enthuses Fabien Rozec is the head of the Marine Observatory of the urban community (CAVEM). The first loggerhead turtle made its nest on a busy beach in the city center of Fréjus. She was observed in the night from Friday to Saturday and to protect her buried eggs about 20 cm deep, surveillance and a security perimeter were installed.
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Placed on the beach, almost lapped by the waves, the double wooden fence intrigues. Formal ban on stepping into the enclosure. Under the sand, turtle eggs are preparing to hatch. So to protect them, men will take turns day and night! "We are organized. You have the firefighters who are there, the municipal police, the marine conservatory," says Raoul Regaieg, chief of the municipal police department in Fréjus. "They came to Fréjus, we want the babies to find their mom at sea."
"Now you have to wait at least fifty days for some answers"
Among the experts, the surprise is total. These sea turtles, loggerhead turtles about one meter in size, do not usually lay eggs on the French coast. "It is true that it seems really incredible, because it is really a very alive site", confirms Sidonie Catteau in charge of marine turtles project for the association Marineland. "There is the night market next door, you have streetlights, music, restaurants, the Ferris wheel which is not far away. And yet the turtle chose this place. Now, you have to wait at least fifty days to have some answers and some results. "
Because these eggs, sometimes 80 per lay, will not necessarily give birth to baby turtles. In the end, it is nature that decides.