Since 2003, Pueblo Bonito Golf & Spa Resorts has served as an environmental custodian by safeguarding sea turtle nests from predators. The program’s mission is to return turtle hatchlings to the sea to boost the survival rate of an endangered reptile that’s crucial to the region’s ecosystem.
Twenty-two years ago, a scant 83 nests were safeguarded at Pueblo Bonito’s two oceanfront resorts, Pacifica and Sunset Beach. In 2024, more than 1,500 nests were protected, a significant increase. Nesting typically occurs between June 15 and December 7. The incubation period for turtle eggs is approximately 45 days.
World Turtle Day, sponsored by American Tortoise Rescue, a nonprofit organization established in 1990 to protect all tortoise and turtle species, was created to celebrate turtles and tortoises and protect their disappearing habitats worldwide. On May 23, turtle lovers from Cabo to Cuba will throw parties, organize fundraisers, and take “shellfies” to share on social media.
While turtles have survived for more 200 million years (they outlived the dinosaurs), approximately 61% of the worldwide population are threatened or already extinct. According to experts, turtles, often associated with wisdom and longevity, are the most threatened of the major group of vertebrates, more so than birds, mammals, and fish.
Pueblo Bonito Golf & Spa Resorts has diligently answered the call, heeding the mission statement of World Turtle Day’s organizers: “It’s in our best interest to share the planet with turtles harmoniously and responsibly as part of our natural heritage.”
At the appointed hour later this year, thousands of turtle hatchlings the size of silver dollars will scurry across the beach to the sea. These gentle reptiles need all the help they can get to safely reach the water, attain maturity and increase their numbers.
Guests of Pueblo Bonito Resorts can join conservation team members to carry the hatchlings of endangered sea turtles to the shallow surf, greatly enhancing their chances of survival. Last year, 145,000 hatchlings were successfully released.
Because everything in nature is interrelated, turtles play a unique role in the preservation of the shoreline in Los Cabos.
If sea turtles diminish in number, both the beach and marine systems at the tip of the Baja Peninsula will suffer. Sea turtles use beaches and dunes to nest and lay approximately 100 eggs per nest. They not only dig holes that are inhabited by other creatures, but they also keep beaches clean by feeding on dead fish that wash up on shore. Dune plants use the nutrients from turtle eggs to grow and become stronger. Without the turtles, dune vegetation would lose a major source of nutrients and would not be healthy or strong enough to anchor the dunes and form a wall to defend the coast against high waves. Without turtles, the fragile balance of the ecosystem would be seriously affected. In time, the beaches would erode and wash away. The negative impact on tourism would be incalculable.
Three of seven of the world’s sea turtle species live and reproduce in Los Cabos. The Olive Ridley turtle population is recovering favorably. There’s also the brown (or black) turtle; and the leatherback turtle, which attains a length of seven feet and a weight of over 2,000 pounds.
For additional information about Pueblo Bonito Resorts and its turtle programs, access the website at www.pueblobonito.com.
