Two men were arrested on Tuesday after running into the enclosure protecting a loggerhead turtle's nest at Għadira Bay. 

According to a Nature Trust spokeperson, the two people ran into the enclosure while drunk, breaching an outer enclosure made of netting but not an inner one protecting the turtle eggs, which are believed to be safe. 

Both men were arrested after officers from the Rapid Intervention Unit (RIU) were called to the site by volunteers and Malta Tourism Authority officials.

Two separate turtles laid eggs at Għadira Bay this year, with a first nesting in July and a second earlier this month, just metres away from the first nest. Both nests are encircled by the same protective net, which the two men breached on Tuesday.  

So far this year, four loggerhead turtles have laid eggs in Malta - two at Għadira Bay, another at Golden Bay and a fourth at Ramla Bay in Gozo. Eighty-five eggs hatched between the August 2 and 4 from that latter nest in Gozo.

All nesting sites are subject to emergency conservation orders issued by the environmental regulator, ERA.  Nature Trust volunteers have been keeping watch of the turtle nests around the clock.  

The loggerhead turtle Caretta caretta is a long-living, slowly maturing marine species that lives in tropical to warm temperate areas.

It is classified as a globally endangered by the World Conservation Area and is protected by various national and international legislation.

Capturing, killing, taking, and trading these turtles, as well as the deliberate disturbance of the species, particularly during the period of breeding, rearing and migration, is prohibited and subject to legal action.

Even the destruction of eggs or taking of eggs from the wild is strictly prohibited and constitutes a criminal offence.