In November, tens of thousands of male olive ridley sea turtles (
Lepidochelys olivacea) start congregating on just five kilometers of nearshore in Odisha in eastern India. They wait for the females of the species to arrive.
The survival of these prehistoric sea species has largely depended on suitable pairing and mating. However, research findings from around the world indicate that, in the long term, there may be a limited number of males at these mating sites compared to an overwhelming number of females.