The sea turtle's diet includes sponges, marine worms and molluscs.

Adult Green turtles for example are largely vegetarian, eating underwater grasses and seaweed, whilst the Hawksbill turtle is carnivorous and eats invertebrate animals of the coral reefs.

The distribution of turtles in Thai waters is spread out along the fine sand quiet beaches of the coastline and islands in the Gulf of Thailand and the Andaman Sea. These two geographical areas also reflect different nesting times of the turtles.

In the Gulf of Thailand the most important nesting areas for green and hawksbill turtles are Khram and adjacent islands which are located in the inner Gulf, Chonburi Province. There are some islands along the east coast from Chonburi, Rayong and Trat Province and some islands in the middle Gulf of Chumphon and Surattani Province where sea turtles are occasionally found. In the Gulf areas, green and hawksbill turtles lay their eggs all year round with the peak from May to August.

In the Andaman Sea coastal areas of Thailand, the main nesting areas are north-west coast of Phuket, and Phang-nga provinces. In particular these areas include Thai Muang Beach and Phrathong Islands of Phang-nga Province, Maikhao beach Phuket, Tarutao Island and Adang-Rawi Islands of Satun Province . Olive ridley and (occasionally) leatherback turtles are found in these areas. The green and hawksbill are found at the Similan Islands, Surin Islands and Tarutao Islands. The nesting season of sea turtles in the Andaman Sea region occurs only from October to March with a peak from mid-November to mid-January.

Turtles usually lay their eggs between November and March.

The females come ashore after dusk, but they have been observed nesting until just before dawn. They select their nesting site and dig a small pit 18 inches deep using their rear flippers. A clutch of between 40 to 180 eggs will be laid, after which the pit will be carefully concealed by sand before they return to the sea. The whole process usually takes about one hour. During the egg laying, the eyes of the turtle will be covered by a colourless mucus to prevent dehydration and keep out the sand grains.

After an incubation period of 60 days, the hatchlings dig their way up to the surface of the pit, usually at night when the sand is cooler. Hatchlings locate the water's edge by orienting themselves to the horizon, but distant house lights can disorient the youngsters so that they actually crawl away from the sea.

The best diving areas to see turtles are the Similan and Surin Islands National Parks, visited by liveaboards from Khaolak.

Turtles are most commonly seen in shallow reefs on dive sites such as East of Eden (Ko Payu, Similans) or Ko Torinla (Surin), but you may see them deeper on rocky sites such as Elephant Head Rock or Deep Six (Ko Payu, Similans). The usual sightings are Hawksbill and Green turtles.

At Thai Muang (National Park) beach, Leatherback and Olive Ridley are the two main species of nesting turtles.
There is an annual 7 day event here, usually during the first week of March, to release young turtle hatchlings, which have been raised by the Fisheries Deptartment, back into the sea.
This is designed to heighten people's awareness of the declining numbers of nesting females and promote conservation efforts.


arine Turtles have been given legal protection in Thailand for many years, and His Majesty King Bhumibhol Adulyade and Her Majesty Queen Sirikit have initiated several specific turtle conservation projects.

The Royal Thai Navy has an active role in the turtle conservation program and regularly patrols beaches in the Similan and Surin Islands in the Andaman Sea, for intruders and poachers. They also protect the green and hawksbill eggs laid on the remote islands and keep them safe from predators such as birds and crabs. Once they are born, the turtles are brought to the Navy's turtle protection centre in Phang-nga province where they are nursed for another six months before being released into the sea.

There are several NGO's (non-government organisations) and volunteer groups working in Thailand with the aim of protecting sea turtles. Naucrates, for example, have greatly reduced egg poaching on the islands of Ko Phra Thong and Ko Khao, just north of Khaolak.