Mexico seizes more than 12,000 marine turtle eggs

Mexican environmental authorities seized 12,188 olive ridley sea turtle eggs laid along the country's shores, the Naval Ministry said Thursday.

Helped by marines, environmental inspectors found those eggs in central Michoacan and southern Oaxaca states Tuesday and Wednesday in annual conservation efforts coordinated by Profepa, Mexico's environmental protection agency.

All the eggs were turned over to Profepa, which later took the eggs to a sea turtle conservation camp, where they will be safeguarded and left to hatch, said Semar.

The olive ridley sea turtle, also known as the Pacific ridley sea turtle, is a medium-sized sea turtle living in warm and tropical waters, primarily in the Pacific and Indian Oceans.

The olive ridley has made the coasts of Michoacan and Oaxaca its principal nesting sites, leading Mexico to conduct annual inspections to combat illegal trade in eggs.

Catching, poaching and tourism development have endangered the species. Endi