Caretta caretta in Çıralı: Why a dark night can make such a difference

For holiday guests, a day at the beach often ends with the last light over the water. For sea turtles, a crucial phase may then begin. A female comes ashore to lay her eggs. Weeks later, tiny hatchlings must find their way from the sand to the sea. Between these events lies a beach shared by animals and people.

In Çıralı, in the district of Kemer, this connection is particularly visible. Caretta caretta is part of the region's natural heritage. Its protection shows how much local cooperation can achieve – and why a beautiful holiday sometimes begins with consciously avoiding light, noise and close proximity.

Large sea turtles, small beginnings

Caretta caretta is known in English as the loggerhead sea turtle. It is a sea turtle, not a giant tortoise that lives on land. Adult animals impress with their powerful bodies and large heads. Yet their lives begin as tiny hatchlings on a nesting beach. Females come ashore to lay eggs; protecting these beaches is therefore an essential part of species conservation. NOAA species profile

When we speak of “our turtles,” we mean wild animals from our coastal region. They belong neither to a hotel nor to an excursion provider. An encounter remains an experience of nature and cannot be booked like an activity on a holiday itinerary.

Çıralı's success is the result of years of work

Behind the nest markers on the beach are people who observe, document and explain. In Çıralı, the responsible nature conservation authority DKMP and the Ulupınar environmental cooperative work together; the Municipality of Kemer supports conservation and monitoring work. The municipality also names this cooperation in its report on the end of the 2026 season. Municipality of Kemer on the conservation programme

Students also contribute. In August 2025, the district administration reported on biology students from Hacettepe University who had completed their work as volunteers and interns in the Caretta conservation programme in Çıralı. Here, nature conservation also means passing on knowledge and encouraging people to take on a long-term task. Kemer District Administration, 8 August 2025

A protected nest is more than a number. It is an area of the beach where the needs of the animals take priority. A patrol, a conversation with guests or a disturbance noticed in time may seem unspectacular. Over an entire season, precisely such tasks make the difference.

The 2026 results: 117 nests and 3,458 hatchlings in the sea

At the end of the season, DHA reported on 30 September 2026 that Çıralı had 117 nests and 3,458 live hatchlings that reached the sea. The detailed results also list 7,536 eggs and 489 hatchlings that did not survive after hatching, either in or outside the nest. In its shorter report, the municipality refers to around 3,500 hatchlings. Detailed 2026 season results, DHA

The figures deserve careful interpretation: eggs, hatched young and hatchlings that reached the sea alive are different measures. Even successfully reaching the water is not yet evidence of how many animals will later reach adulthood.

Nevertheless, the results are a concrete achievement backed by a great deal of work. They show that space for the offspring of wild animals can be preserved on a visited holiday coastline. However, a single season is not enough to claim a long-term population increase or a new record.

Corona 2020: More peace and quiet – but what effect is proven?

The assumption is obvious: during the Corona restrictions, fewer people were on the beach. Perhaps this meant fewer disturbances and less artificial light. Could that have helped the turtles?

There are contemporary observations on this for Çıralı. On 4 June 2020, Anadolu Ajansı reported that the beach had been closed to visitors for an extended period. The local cooperative representative described quieter conditions during egg-laying. The season report in September subsequently recorded around 100 nests and more than 3,100 hatchlings reaching the sea. AA on quiet conditions at the beach, June 2020, AA on the season results, September 2020

A scientific study by Sönmez and colleagues reports 86 nests in Çıralı in 2019 and 100 in 2020. Press reports sometimes cite 85 nests for 2019. The rise in nests is therefore well documented; however, the small discrepancy between sources should remain visible. Study on nesting activity in Çıralı, 2021

What is not proven is the stronger claim that less beach lighting in Çıralı during Corona demonstrably led to more hatchlings emerging. The local sources reviewed do not provide a shared dataset on light intensity, visitor numbers and hatching success. Nor does an increase in nests automatically mean an increase in hatched or surviving young.

The link between quiet conditions and more favourable circumstances is plausible and supported by observations from that period. However, the specific extent of light's influence in Çıralı cannot be calculated from this.

What research on other coasts shows

A study on Zakynthos compared the distribution of Caretta caretta turtles in May and June 2020 with 2018 and 2019. With lower visitor pressure, more animals remained in nearshore areas. The study supports the importance of human disturbance in the water. However, it examines neither Çıralı's beach lighting nor its number of hatchlings. Schofield and colleagues, 2021

Another study investigated light pollution on nesting beaches in Egypt's Red Sea. During the 2020 pandemic, it described a marked reduction in lighting on the island beaches studied. This study concerns a different marine area and other sea turtle species. It helps us understand the question of light, but it is not local evidence for Çıralı. Attum and Nagy, 2024

Such findings point to a sensible direction for tourism: fewer avoidable disturbances along sensitive coastlines. A success story becomes more credible when it also acknowledges the limits of its knowledge.

Why darkness belongs on the beach

Artificial light can misdirect hatchlings. A study of Caretta caretta nests in Florida found a link between the brightness of the night sky and hatchling disorientation; however, this study found no corresponding effect on nest-site selection. This alone shows why different stages of the life cycle must be considered separately. Study on the effects of light on Caretta caretta, 2020

In practice, this means switching off, shielding, or directing away from the beach any light visible from the nesting beach. NOAA also recommends removing beach equipment after use and filling in holes dug in the sand. This leaves fewer obstacles for nesting females and hatchlings. NOAA: Protect nesting beaches

A lit beach may be a beautiful backdrop from a human perspective. For animals, the same glow can be a disturbance. Good holiday quality does not therefore have to mean making the coast as bright as possible at night.

How guests can protect the underwater world

Consideration begins on the beach and continues in the water. Simple choices can help:

• Respect nesting areas: Observe signs and barriers. Do not dig up eggs or open nests yourself. Monitoring belongs in the hands of the conservation team.
• Keep nights quiet and dark: Follow current local access rules, and do not shine lights on animals for photos or photograph them with flash.
• Observe animals without disturbing them: Keep your distance while swimming, snorkelling, and diving. Do not touch, chase, or feed turtles.
• Avoid litter and take it with you: Packaging and cords do not belong in the sea. Fishing gear and other marine debris can injure or entangle animals.
• Report problems: If animals are injured, stranded, or entangled, notify the local conservation team or relevant authorities instead of starting your own rescue operation.

These principles reflect recommendations for the protection and observation of sea turtles. Local protected-area rules and the instructions of those responsible also apply on site. NOAA: Observing animals, NOAA: Threats and conservation measures

Tourism that makes room

Çıralı shows how closely nature conservation and holidays are connected. The beach is attractive because it has remained a habitat. This quality is lost when observing nature becomes constant illumination, touching, or chasing.

Accommodation providers and excursion operators can contribute greatly: inform guests before their visit, avoid promising guaranteed turtle encounters, and support existing conservation programmes. Environmental education activities should follow the guidance of those responsible on site. A nest is not opened for a hotel group; a hatching season is not a performance that can be scheduled every day.

For your trip to Erendiz Garden Hotel, you can combine nature excursions with a stay in Kemer. If you are also interested in the landscape beneath the water, you can find information about enquiries on our diving in Kemer page. External activities are arranged separately; turtle sightings are not guaranteed.

Perhaps this is the most important lesson from the quieter beaches of the COVID period: we do not have to give up holidays to make room for nature. We need to decide more carefully when to turn off the lights, keep our distance, and leave a beach to its other inhabitants.

Research status: 5 October 2026. Local seasonal reports, scientific studies, and the recommendations derived from them are presented separately in this article.