Sea Turtles Are Returning to Quintana Roo in Record Numbers

Sea Turtles Are Coming Back to Puerto Morelos

Every spring, something ancient happens on the beaches just north of town.  Female sea turtles, some of them decades old, crawl ashore at night to lay their eggs in the same sand where they were born.

And thanks to the hard work of local conservationists, more of those eggs are making it to the sea than ever before.

Quintana Roo reported a strong 2025 nesting season with over 142,000 sea turtle hatchlings released statewide, part of ongoing conservation efforts recognized by networks like WIDECAST, which unifies work across more than 40 countries.

Puerto Morelos is a big reason why.

What's Happening Right Here in Our Backyard

Puerto Morelos is one of the few places in the entire country where four species of sea turtles come to nest. Green turtles, loggerheads, hawksbills, and leatherbacks all arrive on our shores between May and November. That makes our stretch of coastline genuinely rare.

During the 2025 nesting season, local efforts in Puerto Morelos contributed to Quintana Roo's strong results, with over 13,000 nests monitored statewide in the northern zone, including green and loggerhead species.

The three main nesting areas are Punta Brava, Punta Petempich, and Punta Caracol. Punta Brava consistently sees the highest number of nesting females each season.

A Program Built on Community

The municipal Sea Turtle Protection and Conservation Program runs every year from May through November. It is a collaboration between the Puerto Morelos Ecology Department, federal agencies like SEMARNAT and PROFEPA, the National Reef Park, hotels, students, and community volunteers.

The municipal Sea Turtle Protection and Conservation Program, run from May through November in collaboration with local ecology departments, federal agencies, and volunteers, supervised nest monitoring along the Puerto Morelos coastline this season.

The Bigger Picture

Puerto Morelos is part of the larger Riviera Maya-Tulum Sea Turtle Conservation Program, operated by Flora, Fauna y Cultura de México A.C., which has released over 20 million hatchlings since 1996.

Conservation teams now use a platform called EarthRanger, which pulls together GPS data, patrol reports, and surveillance cameras into one real-time system. It helps rangers respond faster to threats like poaching and predators, and lets biologists track nest temperatures and exact locations with precision.

How You Can Help

The nesting season runs from May through November. Here is what every resident and visitor should know.

If you see a turtle on the beach at night, stay quiet and keep your distance. Do not use flash photography, and turn off any lights facing the sea.

Turtles navigate by natural light, and artificial lights can disorient both nesting females and hatchlings trying to find the water.

If you find a nest or see a turtle in distress, contact the Puerto Morelos Ecology Department rather than trying to handle it yourself.

The beaches at Punta Brava and Punta Petempich are protected areas. Treat them that way.

The ancestors of modern sea turtles have been swimming Earth's oceans for more than 100 million years. With a little care from all of us, they will keep coming back to Puerto Morelos for a long time to come.