The team and volunteers alike at The Great Turtle Project have certainly been busy these past few days! They were lucky enough to experience the magical moment a mother green turtle slid up on shore to lay her eggs. Volunteers helped to make sure she was left in peace as she finished nesting, the volunteers reburied the eggs the next day to ensure their protection. We look forward to seeing these tiny turtles hatch in 50 – 60 days time! If you are visiting the project around this time, you can expect to be involved with releasing them back into the sea!
This beauty came to shore to nest! What a magical experience this was for volunteers to experience!
The eggs then need to reburied at the sanctuary where they will be safe from nest raiders of both the human and animal kind! Also, this eliminates the risk of a nest on the beach becoming water logged - which is when the tide comes in too high and the water infiltrates the nest which prevents the babies from hatching, as it is a very narrow stretch of beach.
The next day, the volunteers then grouped together to bury the eggs in the sand at the sanctuary, replicating a natural nesting hole.
The nests are then marked and monitored. in 50-60 days time, there will be lots of baby turtles running around! After a few days spent in the tanks, which allows their eye sight to develop, they will then be ready to be released in the sea, and past that point mother nature takes control!
Here you can see a group of volunteers who assisted with releasing some baby turtles from a previous nest. They do this in the evening so there are fewer birds around, and so that as many babies make it into the water as possible. Without human intervention, just 1/1000 turtle eggs will survive naturally, so this process is vital in ensuring they have the best possible chance to make it to the ocean!
The project didn’t stop there, either – the team have been busy collecting supplies and money for the local schools. Check out these adorable photos of how much volunteers enjoyed giving new pens, pencils and more to the school children, and how much the children enjoyed receiving them! Happy colouring, kids!
Volunteers donated some fun supplies to the local school children!
The children certainly enjoyed receiving pens, pencils and more!
It was just as much of a magical experience for the volunteers too, to see the joy on the children's faces knowing they have new supplies to enjoy.
This work this project carries out really is integral to turtle conservation. If you would like to know more about The Great Turtle Project then please visit our project page.
