A total of 90 hawksbill sea turtle hatchlings emerged on resort island Boracay Tuesday evening. According to Haron Deo Vargas of the Boracay Community Environment and Natural Resources Office (CENRO), the lights of surrounding houses likely disoriented the hatchlings as they headed towards the main road instead of the water.
The local CENRO was notified after the hatchlings were spotted wandering from their nesting grounds.
The following morning, 87 hatchlings were released to the shore. Three were found dead during the previous night’s rescue operation.
“We are glad [to] have an active community [on] Boracay who readily respond to the needs of wildlife protection, even [in] the wee hours of the night,’’ said Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Region VI Executive Director Francisco E. Milla, Jr.
The  hawksbill sea turtle is considered a critically endangered species, which, according to the World Wildlife Fund, refers to a species facing an extremely high risk of extinction.
National Geographic notes, the species can be found in the tropical waters of the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans and prefer living near coastlines. However, their eggs are still eaten in various communities around the world, they are often killed for their flesh, and can get caught in fishing nets./WDJ