Con Dao has 18 beaches where green sea turtles (also known as "vich") and hawksbill turtles lay their eggs. Some of the larger beaches where many mother turtles come to nest include Cat Lon, Bai Duong on Hon Bay Canh, Cat Lon on Hon Cau, Cat Lon on Hon Tre Lon, and Hon Tai beach. All five beaches have ranger stations dedicated to protecting natural resources and conserving sea turtles.

The turtle breeding season in Con Dao (Ba Ria - Vung Tau Province) lasts from April to October, with the peak months being from July to September. During this time, many tourists and volunteers, both local and international, come to participate in conservation activities and learn about sea turtle protection.

Around midnight, when the tide is high, mother turtles come ashore to find suitable spots on large beaches, where they dig nests about 50-60cm deep and 20cm wide before laying their eggs.

Each mother turtle can lay between 50 and 120 eggs per night and may do so 3 to 5 times during a single breeding season.

Hon Bay Canh beach has the highest number of nesting turtles out of the 14 nesting beaches in Con Dao. During the peak of the breeding season, up to 20-30 mother turtles may come ashore to lay their eggs on a single night.

Once the mother turtles leave the nest, rangers from Con Dao National Park collect the eggs and move them to incubation areas. The eggs are relocated to ensure a high hatching rate, protecting them from environmental and human threats.

After 45-60 days of incubation, the eggs hatch, and the baby turtles are released back into the ocean. This is a rare experience that visitors to Con Dao can participate in, releasing the hatchlings into the sea.

"Life is truly miraculous when witnessing the extraordinary cycle of these turtles. This activity is not only crucial for turtle conservation but also helps raise awareness about environmental protection," shared Mai Trinh, a tourist from Quang Nam.

Baby sea turtles have the ability to memorize the characteristics of the place where they were born. When they reach maturity (about 25-30 years later), they return to the exact same place to continue the reproductive cycle.

Sea turtles are an endangered species listed in both Vietnam’s Red Book and the global endangered species list. Their survival rate is extremely low - only about 1 in 1,000 hatchlings survive to adulthood. Con Dao is home to over 85% of all sea turtle nesting activity in Vietnam. In 2023, more than 100,000 baby turtles were successfully incubated and released into the sea.

Nguyen Hue – Tien Nguyen