Loggerheads: nests multiply in the western Mediterranean
· BehindLines newsroom
The loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta), listed as "vulnerable" by the IUCN, is nesting more and more in the western Mediterranean, where its nests were once rare. On 6 November Mongabay published a report on the Italian and Spanish beach resorts that are learning to share their sands with it.
A shift to the west
Historically, Mediterranean nesting was concentrated in the eastern and central basins, mainly in Greece, Türkiye and Cyprus; the west served mostly as a feeding ground for juveniles. According to Mongabay, nests have been appearing there for five decades, in Italy, France and Spain. The first confirmed Spanish nest dates from 2001, and nesting there has been regular every year since 2014. The European executive agency CINEA reports that the LIFE TURTLENEST project logged over 700 clutches across Italy in 2025, against 443 in 2023 and 601 in 2024.
Sandra Hochscheid of the Anton Dohrn Zoological Station in Naples describes an expansion observed "in real time". Carlos Carreras of the University of Barcelona relies on genomic data: the new nesters appear to come from established populations, related to those of Greece, Türkiye and the Caribbean. He suggests that warmer seas speed up the growth of young turtles, which reach maturity sooner.
Beaches, light and the tourist season
The flip side of this good news is human pressure. Mongabay notes that about 27,000 private beach clubs cover nearly 43% of Italy's beaches. CINEA names two major threats: machines that clear the sand and can crush eggs buried a few tens of centimetres deep, and light pollution, which disorients females and hatchlings. A July 2026 study by Ms Hochscheid's team, cited by Mongabay, reported that beachfront lights reached 87% of the nests in Campania monitored in 2022 and 2023, and that 82% needed human help.
Attitudes are changing: Leda Tonizello of the association ELSA ETS recalls that at first the gates of beach establishments stayed shut to turtle conservationists and tracks were erased. In Ascea, low, turtle-friendly lighting has been installed on the promenade, and from 2027 low-impact lighting standards will be compulsory for any business seeking a beach concession, according to Mongabay. The mayor, Stefano Sansone, argues that protecting the environment also makes economic sense.
What remains to be established
The LIFE TURTLENEST project, launched in 2023, is co-financed by the European Union and coordinated by the NGO Legambiente with partners in Italy, Spain and France. Its manager, Stefano Di Marco, judges that the recent numbers tell "a two-sided story". Mongabay notes that researchers are mapping the thermal profiles of Spanish coastlines and testing sand to predict which beaches will stay suitable. If temperatures keep rising, warns Francesca Capanni of the University of Siena, suitable habitats could shrink.