The coast of Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, is a special place where various species of sea turtles nest, including the olive ridley turtle (Lepidochelys olivacea), the leatherback turtle (Dermochelys coriacea), and the black turtle (Chelonia mydas agassizii). Each year, these turtles return to the beaches where they were born to lay their eggs in the sand. This phenomenon is known as philopatry and is an incredibly precise process, as the turtles are able to find the same beach using the Earth's magnetic field as a compass.
Once the female turtles reach the beach, they dig nests in the sand where they deposit their eggs. This process can take several hours, as the turtles dig deep holes with their hind flippers to ensure their eggs are protected from predators and adverse environmental conditions. After laying between 80 and 120 eggs, the females carefully cover the nest with sand and return to the ocean, leaving their eggs under the protection of nature.
The incubation period for sea turtle eggs lasts between 45 and 70 days, depending on the temperature of the sand. During this time, the eggs remain buried and seemingly inactive. However, inside each egg, a turtle embryo slowly develops, feeding on the yolk that the mother has left in the egg.
The temperature of the sand also plays a crucial role in determining the sex of the hatchlings, with warmer temperatures producing more females and cooler temperatures producing more males. When the time for hatching arrives, the baby turt.