Malta's 2026 loggerhead turtle nesting season closed without a confirmed nest despite around 11 recorded nesting attempts, known as false crawls.
Nature Trust Malta described the season as unusually difficult after volunteers repeatedly found evidence of turtles coming ashore without successfully laying eggs. The Environment and Resources Authority, however, has cautioned that one season should not be treated as evidence of a long-term population trend.
What is a false crawl?
A false crawl occurs when a female turtle comes ashore but returns to the sea without nesting. Some attempts may end very quickly, while in other cases a turtle can spend considerable time on a beach before abandoning the attempt.
Nature Trust significantly expanded monitoring during the 2026 season, eventually watching 17 beaches after turtle activity was recorded in locations that had not necessarily been expected to host nesting.
Different years can produce very different results
ERA says loggerhead nesting activity naturally varies between years. Female turtles also do not normally reproduce every year because producing several clutches of eggs requires substantial energy, and intervals of two or three years between breeding seasons are possible.
That makes long-term monitoring essential. A year with no confirmed nests is important to record, but cannot by itself establish that Malta's nesting population is declining.
Keeping beaches suitable for wildlife
The season nevertheless reinforces the importance of maintaining potential nesting habitat. Artificial lighting, noise, physical obstacles and crowded beaches can all add pressure to coastal environments used by wildlife.
Anyone seeing a turtle coming ashore should avoid approaching it, using flash photography or creating noise around it, and should allow trained conservation teams to assess the situation.
The 2026 season will now become another data point in Malta's growing record of loggerhead turtle activity. Future seasons will show whether it was simply natural variation or part of a broader change.
Sources
The Malta Independent — ERA response on the 2026 nesting season, 24 August 2026
The Malta Independent — Nature Trust Malta on the 2026 season, 17 August 2026