Leatherbacks Shift Nesting Southward

Records compiled from 1980–2026 show eastern Pacific leatherback sea turtles increasingly nesting on Ecuador’s coast (Manabí Province), roughly 1,000 miles south of their historic sites in Mexico and Costa Rica, with hatching reported again in 2020–2026 and concurrent increases in strandings linked to fisheries injuries. The shift correlates with long‑term ocean warming and changing El Niño/La Niña patterns, suggesting turtles are tracking cooler upwelling waters for successful reproduction. — This signals a climate‑driven range and life‑history shift for a critically endangered species, forcing new cross‑border conservation priorities, fisheries regulation, and local protection measures in countries previously outside the core nesting range.