Two men in Florida were arrested for stealing nearly 500 sea turtle eggs

Sea turtle eggs, coveted in some cultures for their aphrodisiac qualities, proved irresistible for two Florida men when they were arrested last week for possessing around 500 of them.

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Raymond Saunders and Carl Cobb, both 50, were arrested on felony charges of possession of “more than 11 marine turtle species/eggs and illegal taking or disturbing of a marine species turtle nest,” said Carol Lyn Parrish, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission public information coordinator.

She said over the past several weeks, her agency got information from biologists and people who monitor the nests of “possible illegal activity occurring around the sea turtle nests.”

The eggs recovered last Wednesday are thought to be loggerhead turtle eggs.

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Loggerheads are the most commonly encountered nesting sea turtles on Florida’s Treasure Coast, with nesting season from March through October.