Zákynthos - Laganás Bay

In the southeast of the island of Zákynthos, 8km/5mi south of Zákynthos town, is the wide bay of Laganás, with beautiful sandy beaches which are much frequented (and during the main holiday season overcrowded) by holidaymakers.

This bay has been since time immemorial the most important breeding site of the loggerhead turtle in the whole of the Mediterranean. Only a few years ago more than 1,300 of these turtles, which are over a meter long and weigh anything up to 150kg/330lb, were still laying their tennis- ball-sized eggs in the sand of the beaches every year; but recently, as a result of the rapidly developing tourist trade, their numbers have declined sharply and the young turtles' chances of survival are being steadily reduced. In order to protect this endangered species, therefore, the Greek Ministry of the Environment has announced a plan to establish closed breeding areas; but the plan has come up against strong resistance from local people, who fear that it will lead to a decline in the tourist trade. The establishment of a fully protected national park is being strongly urged by those concerned for the protection of nature, but this seems unlikely to be achieved in the near future.