Fethiye uses red lights to protect nesting sea turtles
MUĞLA
The southwestern province of Muğla’s Fethiye coastline is expanding the use of red-colored street lighting in an effort to better protect nesting sea turtles, building on a pilot project launched last year at Karaot Beach.
The initiative will now be implemented at Kocaçalış Beach, one of the region’s important nesting grounds for endangered sea turtles.
The project, carried out in cooperation with researchers from Pamukkale University, aims to reduce the impact of artificial lighting on sea turtles during their nesting and hatching seasons. Under the scheme, conventional streetlights near the beach are being replaced with red lighting, which scientific studies have shown has a far lower effect on sea turtles than bright white lights.
