Nesting Success of Lepidochelys olivacea (Cheloniidae) In Situ Incubation in the Cabo Pulmo National Park, Baja California Sur, Mexico

Information on the ecology of the olive ridley turtle (Lepidochelys olivacea) in Mexico is scarce, and only a few studies have been conducted on this species at the northern limit of its nesting distribution on the Baja California peninsula. The present study evaluated the key characteristics of the in situ reproductive ecology of L. olivacea on beaches of the Cabo Pulmo National Park (CPNP). We provide basic statistics for five beaches and statistical comparisons between the northernmost (Las Barracas) and southernmost (Los Frailes Beach) beaches of CPNP using a Bayesian analysis of variance (B-ANOVA) to evaluate the spatial and temporal variation in reproductive parameters with data from 2010 to 2015. We found a high probability of differences between years for all parameters (hatching success BF10 = 3.91 × 107; emergence success BF10 = 1.7 × 107; mortality BF10 = 1.7 × 107), and no evidence of differences between beaches for any parameter (BF10 < 0.27). The overall means for clutch size, hatching success, emergence success, and mortality were 95.08 eggs, 61%, 66%, and 39%, respectively.