This time of year, beaches are usually flooded with people celebrating the warming weather. But due to the COVID-19 pandemic, beaches around the world are the emptiest they’ve ever been — when it comes to humans, that is. And in Phuket, Thailand, rare leatherback sea turtles have been taking advantage of the tourist-free beaches, and are nesting at unprecedented rates.
According to Reuters, local authorities have found 11 leatherback sea turtle nests on Phuket beaches since November. Kongkiat Kittiwatanawong, director of the Phuket Marine Biological Center, said this is the greatest number of leatherback sea turtle nests that Thailand’s beaches have seen in 20 years.
“This is a very good sign for us because many areas for spawning have been destroyed by humans,” Kittiwatanawong told...
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