# ISSUE 12 The Sea Turtles Are Here Again This Year!

2022.08

Kamogawa Sea World is the flagship facility of GRANVISTA Hotels & Resorts in Chiba Prefecture. Right in front of the resort is Tojo Beach, where wild loggerhead seas turtles come to lay their eggs between July and August.

“Female turtles lay their eggs several times during a season, at intervals of two to three weeks,” reveals Tomonori Yoshimura, head of the fish exhibit. Yoshimura has been overseeing the spawning of loggerhead sea turtles in the wild at Kamogawa Sea World for nearly two decades.

“The number of turtles landing on Tojo Beach is decreasing every year. Factors such as global warming, which causes sandy beaches to become smaller and smaller due to the rise in sea level, are thought to contribute to this trend. Every year, I look around the beach, anxiously wondering if they will come.”　

On July 17, 2022, a little later than usual, the staff finally confirmed the first spawning at Tojo Beach. Everyone was relieved.