Help save 500,000 sea turtle hatchlings in Yucatan

2025 marks our 36th year working to protect and monitor key nesting beaches in the Yucatán Peninsula. This is a huge milestone for us, and it wouldn't have been possible without you, our donors. Thirty-six years may sound like a long time, but when working with species that take 20 to 30 years to mature and reproduce, our efforts represent the protection of just one sea turtle generation. That is why we always think in terms of long-term actions.

Almost one month ago, on November 14th, we wrapped up the 2025 nesting season. We completed the season with only one ATV operating at the El Cuyo nesting beach. In Celestún and Holbox, our technicians had to walk to record nests, which was an extremely demanding task. Despite these limitations, nesting numbers were strong: 5,094 green turtle nests, 3,074 hawksbill nests, 2 leatherback nests, and 1 loggerhead nest, similar to those recorded in 2024.

Hatchling production was also encouraging! Based on nest content analyses, we estimate that 325,177 hawksbill, 553,802 green, and 104 leatherback hatchlings made it safely from their nests to the ocean. The conditions of these three nesting beaches continue to be ideal for hatchling development, with emergence success ranging from 83-96% in hawksbill turtles and 87-95% in green turtles. We also re-encountered a female hawksbill turtle that has been nesting in this region for three decades! She was first tagged in 1995 in El Cuyo and our team spotted her again this season. Events like this remind us why protecting these beaches matters. Conserving these sites is essential for the recovery of sea turtle populations and for giving our planet a chance to restore balance.

We would like to express our most sincere gratitude to each and every one of our donors this year. Your contributions, big or small, allow us to keep doing the good work to protect critical habitats for sea turtles. As the end of the year approaches, we wish you and your families all the best. May your generosity return to you many times over, and we hope to count on your support in the coming year.

With warm appreciation and sincere gratitude,

The Pronatura Península de Yucatán team.

Links:

• Follow us on Instagram.
• Visit our webpage to learn more about our program.
• Check our social media for updates.

Sea turtle surprises, strong numbers, and a team that won’t give up.

With two and a half months left in the nesting season, we’re excited to share the latest updates with you, our faithful donors.

Let’s start with the exciting news!
This season has been full of surprises. We were thrilled to discover two leatherback nests in El Cuyo! This species doesn’t usually nest in our region, so finding that a mama leatherback had chosen our beach was incredible. From these two nests, about 100 tiny hatchlings made it safely to the ocean. In Holbox, we also had a rare encounter with a loggerhead turtle nesting over the dunes—our team spotted her just as she was returning to the sea. We’re still waiting for hatchling emergence day to see how many little ones joined her journey.

Now for the good news.
Beyond these rare encounters, our teams have been hard at work monitoring hundreds of nests. Since our last report, we’ve documented:

• Celestún: 303 hawksbill and 7 green turtle nests

• El Cuyo: 729 hawksbill and 1,235 green turtle nests

• Holbox: 787 hawksbill and 32 green turtle nests

These numbers are very similar to last year’s, which means we’re holding steady on the path to recovery. Although about 11% of nests have been lost to predation, erosion, or flooding, the hatching and emergence success rates are very encouraging: 93% and 95% in Celestún, 94% and 95% in El Cuyo, and an impressive 96% for both in Holbox.

And now, the challenges we’re turning around.
In our last report, we shared that our ATVs were being repaired and would be ready for the nesting season. Sadly, things didn’t go as planned. The rust damage turned out to be much worse than expected, and while attempting repairs, the frame of one ATV actually broke. We managed to salvage one vehicle, which is now in use at El Cuyo.

On the other beaches, our teams are doing their best without. In Holbox, monitoring the 24 km beach is now done in 4–5 km segments per day, made possible thanks to boat access. In Celestún, we’ve hired a local fisherman to help the team reach the farthest sections at least twice a week, and with support from CONANP, ATV surveys are carried out once a week along the first 12 km.

Having reliable ATVs makes a huge difference for our work, and we’re now facing the need to either purchase new ones or replace the frames of the old vehicles. If you’d like to help us get back on track, a gift toward this need will directly boost our team’s ability to protect more nests every night.

Despite these challenges, our team continues to give their all—protecting as many nests as possible and ensuring sea turtles have a future here. Your support makes this possible. Every donation helps us protect turtles, strengthen local communities, and keep this work going strong.

Thank you for being part of this journey. We couldn’t do it without you, and we sincerely hope we can continue counting on you to help save sea turtles.

Links:

• Follow us on Instagram.
• Visit our webpage to learn more about our program.
• Check our social media for project updates.