Bhubaneswar/Berhampur, Feb 24: A record 6.98 lakh Olive Ridley Turtles have laid eggs at the Rushikulya beach in the recently concluded nesting season, surpassing the previous high for the mass breeding in Odisha.

The Rushikulya beach has witnessed as many as 6,98,718 Olive Ridley Turtles lay their eggs in the nesting season of the current year. The mass breeding continued for eight days, informed Sunny Khokhar, Divisional Forest Officer (DFO), Berhampur.

The number of Olive Ridley Turtles in the mass breeding surpassed the previous record set in 2018. “A total of 6.65 lakh turtles had laid their eggs at Gahirmatha in 2018, which turned out to be the highest number until the current nesting season,” stated Khokhar.

As per the records, a total of 5.50 lakh Olive Ridley Turtles had laid their eggs at Rushikulya in 2022, while 6.37 lakh turtles were part of the mass breeding the following year.

Khokhar said that preparations have been made to protect the eggs for hatching. “We have made extensive preparations for the protection of the eggs until every egg hatches, which is a 45-day process,” added Khokhar.

“To protect the eggs, the beach from Podampeta to Prayagi has been divided into 50 segments and is guarded by forest staff,” Khokhar said further.

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