Olive Ridley Turtle Nest Found Near Ventura Pier
A third documented olive ridley sea turtle nest on Southern California's shoreline was discovered on the beach near the Ventura Pier.
Updated on Nov. 3, 2026 in Reptiles
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An olive ridley sea turtle nest was discovered on the beach near the Ventura Pier on Sunday, marking the third documented olive ridley nest along the Southern California shoreline. Two other nests, found in Huntington and Seal beaches, had their eggs transferred to the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach for incubation.
Why it matters
Olive ridley sea turtles are protected under the Endangered Species Act, and interfering with their nests can bring fines of up to $50,000 or prison time. Fish and wildlife experts attribute the presence of the turtles to El Niño conditions causing warmer water.
The nest is the third documented olive ridley nest along the Southern California shoreline, while NOAA estimates only about 1 in 1,000 sea turtle hatchlings survive into adulthood. Egg incubation takes 45 to 60 days, and the source does not state whether the Ventura nest's eggs will be moved to an aquarium.
The players
Aquarium of the Pacific
A public aquarium in Long Beach, California, that is incubating the eggs from the Huntington and Seal beach nests.
The details
The nest near the Ventura Pier was found Sunday and contains olive ridley sea turtle eggs. The eggs from the Huntington and Seal beach nests were transferred to the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach for safe incubation.
Timeline
Two nests were discovered in Huntington and Seal beaches a few weeks before the Ventura nest was found.
The Ventura Pier nest was discovered on Sunday before publication.
The eggs are expected to incubate for 45 to 60 days, which could mean a New Year's Day hatching.
Seasonal Patterns
The appearance of olive ridley nests on Southern California beaches is tied to El Niño conditions that warmed local waters, bringing turtles into a region where nesting is rarely documented. The three nests found so far mark a rare pattern for a species that typically nests farther south.
Anyone who finds a sea turtle nest should leave it undisturbed, since interfering with protected nests can bring fines up to $50,000 or prison time. Olive ridley turtles are protected under the Endangered Species Act, so reporting nests to authorities rather than handling them is the safe course.
The takeaway
Protecting sea turtles begins with leaving nests alone, since most hatchlings never reach adulthood. Respecting the boundaries around these nests helps the rare visiting species have a chance to return.
What happens next
The Ventura nest's eggs are expected to incubate for 45 to 60 days, which could mean a New Year's Day hatching.
Further reading
For more on the species behind this nest, explore Reptiles coverage.
Source note: This article includes information reported by ABC7.
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