Loggerhead turtles hatch in Almeria
October 21st, 2007 | by nick |40 eggs of loggerhead turtles (tortuga boba - Caretta caretta) hatched last week on a beach in Cabo de Gata, Almeria. Another 40 are expected to hatch these days. The eggs came from Cabo Verde and form part of a reintroduction programme of the Junta de Andalucía and CSIC. The aim is for the same turtles to return to lay their eggs on the same beach, though the high mortality of the species means that very few if any of these young hatched in Almeria will reach adulthood.1000 eggs were taken from Cabo Verde, where a third of the world’s population lives. 800 were left in the Canary Islands and 200 were brought to Andalucia. 120 have been raised in incubators in Sevilla. Small populations of loggerhead turtle in the Mediterranean exist in the Turkey and Greece.
El Mundo
A “new” reproductive female bear with two cubs has been found in Palencia, part of the beleaguered Eastern Cantabrian bear population. With only 30 odd individuals, this population is in a critical state, with at the last count, only two breeding females. In 2008 three cubs were born to the two females only one of which survived, one having been lost to infanticide and the other dying from unknown causes. This discovery of a third female and her two cubs of this year is raises hope for the bears’ future in this region. 
This renovated stone lodge run by the Fundación Quebrantahuesos looks, frankly, like a fantastic place to stay for researchers. Accomodation in the biological station in the heart of Ordesa National Park for groups of 15-20 persons. PS This is not a commercial advert, but a personal recommendation. 
The biodiversity of Mallorca is threatened by invasive species. Exotic pets released by bored owners are a serious issue, including a breeding population of coatis in the Sierra de la Tramontana. 
Interesting long article on bears in El Pais contrasting the acceptance of bears in Asturias with the general opposition in the Pyrenees. 