A total of 35 hatchlings have made their way to the sea from the second nest in Golden Bay to begin hatching this summer, said Wildlife Rescue Team Malta and the Environment & Resources Authority in Facebook posts on Wednesday morning.

They said that the nest will continue to be monitored over the coming days and nights to watch for any further hatchlings.

The nest had originally been discovered in Riviera, Ghajn Tuffieha, but was translocated to Golden Bay so that the nest could be monitored in safer conditions as very shortly after being discovered in Riviera, the beach was flooded during a storm which likely would have damaged and endangered the nest.

Wildlife Rescue Team Malta and the ERA said that there had been signs of activity within the nest, particularly over the past five days, but that it was on Tuesday night when hatchlings began being observed. Once the hatching process started, a total of 35 hatchlings were observed making their way to the sea over a period of three hours.

The hatching began happening in the late hours of Day 50, with the hatchlings being clearly visible in the early hours of Day 51. The footage included in the Wildlife Rescue Team’s Facebook post shows a number of the hatchlings getting to the sea from the nest.

They concluded by thanking all the volunteers on duty, including those with Nature Trust Malta.

Photo: Wildlife Rescue Team Malta/FB