Kendrapara (Odisha), Apr 23 (PTI) In a grand culmination of the annual mass nesting of endangered Olive Ridley turtles, lakhs of hatchlings broke out of eggshells to emerge from sandy pits and crawl towards the sea at the idyllic Gahirmatha beach off Bay of Bengal coast in Odisha’s Kendrapara district.

The natural phenomenon of the birth of the hatchlings sans their mothers left wildlife enthusiasts elated, officials said.

Lakhs of hatchlings have broken out of their eggshells in the past 48 hours and crawled towards the sea, an official said.

The emergence of the hatchlings marks the grand culmination of the annual sojourn of the Olive Ridley turtles along the Gahirmatha beach, regarded as the world’s largest nesting ground for these aquatic animals.

The annual sojourn of the Olive Ridley turtles for mass nesting, also called ‘arribada’ had come to an end at Nasi-1, Nasi-2 and Eakakulanasi islands in Kendrapara district between March 5 and March 10 with over six lakh lakh female turtles turning up at the beach to lay eggs, the Assistant Conservator of Forest, Manas Das, said.

The emergence of hatchlings would last for at least seven to 10 days.

The number of babies would swell considerably in the coming days, the forest official said.

The nesting sites were packed with the Olive Ridley turtle hatchlings and the wildlife officials of Bhitarkanika National Park stationed at these nesting grounds were sole witnesses to the unique natural event, involving the birth of the babies sans their mothers, the official said.

In an attempt to curb the light-induced distraction, the Defence Research Development Organization (DRDO) has masked the high-power light from its Wheelers’ Island missile test range centre, which is located close to the nesting ground.

Tourists and researchers were denied entry to savour the unique event, keeping in mind that the unmanned islands are located close to Wheeler’s island defence test range centre, a prohibited territory.

The hatchlings emerged from the eggshells and initially, wandered around the sandy beach for nearly an hour before making their way towards seawater, narrated wildlife staff.

The baby turtles come out of the eggs after 45 to 55 days.

Their mortality rate is exceedingly high because one out of a thousand survives the life cycle to grow into an adult turtle, the official added. PTI COR AAM SBN AAM SBN