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Tourists posed for pictures and stood in the way of sea turtles attempting to nest on a beach in Costa Rica.(Photo: The Environment Ministry’s Workers Union (SITRAMINAE))
A flood of tourists, taking selfies and using camera flashes, crowded a beach in Costa Rica and prevented sea turtles from laying their eggs along the Pacific Coast last weekend, according to local authorities.
Hundreds of sea turtles make their way to the Ostional Wildlife Refuge in Guanacaste, Costa Rica, to lay their eggs every year, according to the Tico Times.
Authorities said that tourists stood in the way of turtles and caused several to turn back into the ocean without completing their nesting ritual, Leonel Delgado, Secretary of Sitraminae, told La Nación. Tourists touched the turtles, stood on their nests and physically blocked their way, according to Delgado.
The flood of tourists was caused in part by drought plaguing the northern region, the Times reported. Typically, rivers overflow during the rainy season and the refuge is inaccessible to large groups of people.
The Secretary of Environment is investigating the incident and why authorities were unable to<span style="color: Red;">*</span>"control the tourism that hampered and limited the natural process of spawning of turtles," according to a post on the Environment Ministry's Workers Union (SITRAMINAE) Facebook page.
The group posted pictures of the crowded beaches on Sept. 8:
Photos from SITRAMINAE-Sindicato de... - SITRAMINAE-Sindicato de Trabajadores de MINAE | Facebook
Photos from SITRAMINAE-Sindicato de... - SITRAMINAE-Sindicato de Trabajadores de MINAE | Facebook
Photos from SITRAMINAE-Sindicato de... - SITRAMINAE-Sindicato de Trabajadores de MINAE | Facebook
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