Sea Turtles

Photo by Kerri Kane

I love these creatures. My daughter and I for years have been able to volunteer when we can, to help find washback baby turtles. These are lil’ ones that hatch & make it all the way out to the seaweed many many miles offshore, where they’ll live and grow. Not many of them make it that far! But then storms, such as hurricanes, pass through and these small babies get swept back to the shoreline tumbling all the way! Very very tired when they finally make it onto the beach. That’s where volunteers called Washback Watchers can walk the beach looking for them. We collect them and bring them to centers that will care for them. Once recovered, which can happen quickly in just a few days, they are brought back out to the seaweed again. A second chance!!

If you find them on the beaches, do not put them back in the water!! They’re too tired to do that trek by themselves again and will drown : ( Contact a lifeguard or try to find a local marine science center’s phone number, they’ll tell you what to do! Anyways, these in the photo are not small, but thought it would be a good time to mention that, about NOT putting those beached turtles back in the water : )