Doing What’s Best for Sea Turtles

An average working person’s day goes a little something like this: Wake up. Take a shower. Put on clean clothes. Eat a quick breakfast. Jump in the car and head to work. Work, work, work. Enjoy a leisurely lunch. Back to work for a few more hours. Drive home at the end of the day. Prepare dinner, then enjoy the rest of the evening. Many of you can probably relate to this repetitive schedule of events. I know I can. But each of these small doings has a huge impact on the health of the planet. Showering uses gallons of water. Cleaning clothes introduces chemicals into lakes and streams. Commuting burns precious fossil fuels. The list goes on and on. You’ve heard the saying, ‘Earth Day, Every Day,’ but how often have you put it to use?

Everyday, there are hundreds of opportunities to do at least one thing to help the plight of the planet. When in doubt, I remember what Dr. Norton once told me -‘Do what’s best for the sea turtles.’ It may require additional effort, but it’s worth it to sustain our planetary home for a few more
years. Here are a few earth-shattering statistics from the Environmental Sustainability Committee:

• Americans’ total yearly waste would fill a convoy of garbage trucks long enough to wrap around the Earth six times and reach halfway to the moon.
• At the consumption level of the average American, four additional planets of resources would be needed to support Earth’s six billion inhabitants.
• The average North American consumes ten times as much as the average person living in China and thirty times as much as the average person living in India.

For the next 365 days, I’d like to challenge you to become more eco-conscious and get creative! To show that it’s not as hard as it sounds, I’ll be posting my ideas and projects for the coming year each month in Caretta Chronicles. In the meantime, remember-‘Do what’s best for the sea turtles.’

Tags: being green, conservation, eco-friendly, ecosystem, Georgia Sea Turtle Center, jekyll island, jekyll island beaches, jekyll island turtles, kelly o'keefe, science education, sea turtles, turtle habitats
Posted in Beachscape, May 2009 | No Comments »

By Andrea Marroquin
 
 
Jekyll Island Club Member Cornelius Newton Bliss, one of the biggest dry goods merchants of New York, was frequently nominated for public office and just as frequently declined the honor, refusing opportunities to be elected governor and mayor of New York and even turning down the opportunity to be President McKinley’s running mate in the 1900 national elections before Theodore Roosevelt accepted the nomination.
 
 
Like Theodore Roosevelt, Cornelius Bliss was a proponent of preserving America’s public lands. Perhaps for this reason, Bliss, famous for refusing public office, did accept the position of 21st United States Secretary of the Interior in President McKinley’s cabinet from March 6, 1897 to February 19, 1899. In this capacity, Bliss focused his attentions, in part, on forest preservation.
“The preservation of public forests. . . is a matter of vital interest to the entire nation,” Bliss proclaimed in November of 1897, in those days before the birth of the United States Forest Service. In his care were an estimated 1,835,017,692 acres of public lands including 19 Forest Reserves which encompassed almost 19 million acres. Bliss reported to the President regarding the need for “adequate laws for their protection and the proper enforcement thereof, coupled with the inauguration of a comprehensive forest system.”
 
 
“It was my intention originally to establish a forest bureau in this department, but the inadequacy of the appropriation for the work precluded my carrying into effect such [a] plan,” Bliss lamented.
 
 
Bliss had a relatively modest proposal for a beginning Forest Bureau, which he described as a trained corps of 50-60 professional forest agents, supervisors, patrolmen, and assistants to patrol the reserves and enforce regulations. While he was unable to establish a Forest Bureau during his tenure in office owing to a lack of funds, he did go a long way towards establishing a vision for preserving the nation’s forest resources. He spoke of the benefits of such a plan to preserve timber, prevent forest fires, and save the country’s forests for future generations.
 
 
Perhaps his greatest legacy as Secretary of the Interior was made through his hiring of Gifford Pinchot, who was related to Jekyll Island Club Member Amos F. Eno. In 1898, Bliss chose Pinchot as Chief of the Division of Forestry to design an organization to manage the nation’s forests. Pinchot was the nation’s first native professional forester. Under Pinchot, the Bureau of Forestry eventually became known as the United States Forest Service.
 
 
Pinchot advocated the conservation of the nation’s Forest Reserves by planned use and renewal and coined the term “conservation ethic” as it applied to natural resources. It was Pinchot who established the mission of the U.S Forest Service “to provide the greatest amount of good for the greatest amount of people in the long run.” He would run the U.S. Forest Service until 1910.
 
 
Today, the United States possesses a system of 155 National Forests, scientifically managed for multiple uses, including recreation, timber, wilderness, minerals, water, grazing, fishing, and wildlife management. Thanks in part to the enthusiasm, planning, and vision of predecessors such as Cornelius Newton Bliss and Gifford Pinchot, the Forest Service recently celebrated its 100th Anniversary. It is now launching into a new century of service in the United States.
 
 
An active Jekyll Island Club Member, Bliss served on the Executive Committee overseeing Jekyll Island’s management for at least 17 years, from 1892 to 1909, and owned a private flat in the Jekyll Island Clubhouse Annex. Bliss also helped raise funds to build the Jekyll Island Club Stables, purchasing Stall Number Two.
 
 
The historic Club Stables, located on Stable Road, is now the home of the Jekyll Island Museum. It contains exhibits and a Museum Store and is the gateway for daily tours of Jekyll Island’s 240-acre National Historic Landmark District. Call or visit the Jekyll Island Museum at (912) 635-4036 for more information about its many famous Jekyll Island Club Members and its daily tours of Jekyll Island’s historic district.

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Posted in April 2009, Beachscape | No Comments »

Celebrate Spring on Jekyll Island with the first annual Jekyll Island Mother Nature Festival on Saturday, April 18, 2009. The festival boasts numerous activities for families to enjoy the outdoors and explore Jekyll Island while being green-conscious. Be sure to check out the activities below:
  
Festival Highlights
 
Friday, April 17
 
Pre-Fest Beachsweep, 10 AM–12 Noon, Beachdeck
Join the Jekyll Island Authority as they clean the beach in preparation for Earth Day. Gloves and trash bags provided. Just bring some helpful hands!
 
 
Saturday, April 18
Eco-Friendly Craft Zone & Exhibitor Area, 10 AM – 4 PM, Georgia Sea Turtle Center
Make eco-friendly crafts and peruse the numerous arts and crafts vendors, local ecology groups, and green friendly businesses displaying their items and information. Also, step inside the Georgia Sea Turtle Center to learn about sea turtles and their habitat.
 
 
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle- Regift Auction,
10 AM – 4 PM, Georgia Sea Turtle Center
Bid on a variety of items “re-gifted” to the Center in honor of the Mother Nature Festival. The Reduce, Reuse, Recycle – Re-gift Auction puts a spin on the typical silent auction. Proceeds go to the continuing operation of the Georgia Sea Turtle Center. We still need donated items.
 
 
Family Fishing Day 10 AM – 2 PM,
Rixen Pond behind Tidelands Nature Center
Join the Georgia Department of Natural Resources Coastal Resources Division for an afternoon of fishing at Rixen Pond. Free fishing poles provided as well as tips and advice.
 
 
Helicopter Tours 10AM – 4PM,
Jekyll Island Airport
Take a helicopter tour above Jekyll Island with Dragonfly Helicopters. $25 per person.
 
 

Kite Flying Demonstration
11 AM – 1PM, Beach at Blackbeard’s Restaurant
Watch as Coastal Windsports demonstrates their kite flying skills on the beach. Free.
 
 

Herpetology Session
2:00 PM, Tidelands Nature Center
Join the staff at Tidelands in a hands-on demonstration of amphibians and reptiles that make their home on Jekyll Island.
 
 
Outdoor Excursions
Make reservations for a variety of outdoor adventures in Dolphin Tours, Off-Shore Fishing Trips, Horseback Rides on the Beach, Kayak Excursions, a Bird Ramble, or a Beach Ecology Walk.

For more information on all of the Mother Nature festival activities and outdoor excursions, visit: www.jekyllisland.com/mothernaturefestival

Tags: Add new tag, arts and crafts, Beachscape, coastal georgia festivals, coastal windsports, conservation, dolphin tours, eco crafts, ecology, family fishing day, fishing trips, georgia beach vacation, georgia beaches, georgia coast, Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Georgia Sea Turtle Center, helicopter tours, jekyll island, Jekyll Island Beachscape, jekyll island mother nature festival, kite flying, Mother Nature Festival, re-gift, recycle, reduce, reuse, rixen pond, sea turtle conservation, sea turtles, The Georgia Sea Turtle Center on Jekyll Island, tidelands nature center
Posted in April 2009, Beachscape | No Comments »

Early Risers Can Enjoy Hatchling Walks

These tours offer a look at the sea turtle conservation efforts and research programs on Jekyll Island. Early morning risers will explore barrier island ecology while visiting the island’s active turtle nests. The tours include opportunities to assist with data recording and to witness a nest excavation of a hatched nest!
Walks will be conducted on Sunday, Wednesday and Saturday throughout August, and September (Walks after mid-September are tentative based on hatching and may be cancelled). Time varies between 7am-10am, depending on the tide. Location will also vary depending on which nest has hatched and is ready to be excavated.
Participants will be asked to meet at the designated site 15-30 minutes prior to the walk to check-in (you will receive a phone call a couple of days before your walk with directions to the site) and gather as a group with the Walk Guide to begin the walk on time. The walk will consist of a 30-minute beach ecology walk/talk leading up to an active nest that has been hatching on its own for a minimum of 5 days. The group will be met by the Turtle Patrol Interns who will conduct the post-hatching excavation on the nest. Group size is limited in order to maximize the experience for participants and in compliance with Georgia Department of Natural Resources permit restrictions.

Cost is $10 adults (ages 13+), $5 children (12 and under). Price does not include general admission to the Georgia Sea Turtle Center)
*Children under the age of 18 must be accompanied by an adult.
For more information, visit www.georgiaseaturtlecenter.org or call the Georgia Sea Turtle at 912-635-4444.

Arribada Adventures

Looking for something fun and educational to do as a family this summer? Come join us for Arribada Adventures at the Georgia Sea Turtle Center! While sea turtle biologists typically use the term “arribada” to describe the mass nesting of hundreds of thousands of sea turtles, the Georgia Sea Turtle Center Education Team is using it to introduce our new summer programs! Arribada Adventures is geared toward families and has been designed for turtle enthusiasts both young and old! These two hour programs will introduce you and your little hatchlings to Georgia’s turtles! Become an expert Turtler through hands-on activities, games, crafts, and outdoor exploration. Space is limited and reservations are required. For registration and location information, please call 912-635-4444.

Cost: $10/adult, $5/child*. Saturdays 9:00am -11:00am
*Please note that price does not include general admission to the Center.
August 2: Lend ‘em a Flipper
Learn how YOU too can help our fine, flippered friends by participating in a beach sweep and creating
recycled sea turtle art.
August 9: Giving Sea Turtles a Chance
Come learn what the Georgia Sea Turtle Center is doing to help sea turtles. Participate in a mock sea turtle rescue and learn what we do to rehabilitate a turtle!

Education and Conservation

Georgia Sea Turtle Center Educators Alicia Marin and Sarah Mathias had the opportunity to attend and present at the National Marine Educators Association Conference, One World, One Water held in Savannah this year. Sarah presented “Swim into Learning with Sea Turtles,” an update on the Georgia Sea Turtle Center and the education programs we offer children. Alicia presented her Masters Thesis, “Sun, Sand and Sea Turtle: Educating Caribbean Youth through Nonformal Environmental Education.”
The Georgia Sea Turtle Center Education Department is proud to announce that during their first year of operation, approximately 4500 children from 78 individual schools! With that in mind we greatly look forward to the upcoming school year and encourage teachers to bring their students to the Georgia Sea Turtle Center for a visit.
If you are an educator interested in arranging a trip and lesson at the Georgia Sea Turtle Center, contact the Center at 912-635-4444.

Tags: arribada adventures, conservation, Georgia Sea Turtle Center, hatchling walks, jekyll island, jekyll island georgia, nature tours, sea turtle education, sea turtles
Posted in August 2008, Beachscape | No Comments »

On Jekyll Island, conservation is paramount. Great golf courses are pretty important, too. It has not always been easy for golf course managers to balance the demands of golf with their responsibility to the natural environment. Now, the Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program for Golf Courses (ACSP) offers golf courses a way to protect the environment using low or no cost management practices. The ACSP for Golf Courses is an education and certification program that promotes ecologically sound land management and the conservation of natural resources on establishedgolf courses.John Niedhardt and Jim Curry, golf superintendents for the Jekyll Island Authority, have used the program to blend environmentally responsible maintenance practices into their day-to-day operations. They followed the Standard Environmental Management Practices set forth by the ACSP, which are the basis of the certification program. They include six major areas of attention: Environmental Planning, Wildlife and Habitat Management, Chemical Use Reduction and Safety, Water Conservation, Water Quality Management and Outreach and Education. Because of the steady efforts of Niehart, Curry and others, major progress has been made. This includes everything from reducing pesticide and fertilizer use to monitoring water quality, to adding bird nests along the golf course. As a result, the Pine Lakes Golf Course on Jekyll Island is very near to being certified. Golfer support of a course’s environmental management program is essential to its long term success, making Outreach and Education an important component of the certification process. Christa Frangiamore, conservation manager for the Jekyll Island Authority, has been working as part of the Jekyll Island team to complete these requirements of the certification process. As a means of educating the public while also improving the landscape, a wetland demonstration garden is being planned for the Pine Lakes Golf Course. “We are going to use a runoff retention pond to create an attractive wildlife garden that will host native plants and wildlife,” Frangiamore said. Several things will be accomplished using this educational tool. “We can show people an attractive and effective way to deal with rain water runoff,” said Frangiamore. “The garden will hold native wetland plants, and people can get ideas for their own landscaping projects.” The garden will naturally attract birds and butterflies thus aiding those volunteers who are compiling native species lists for butterflies, birds and “herps” (amphibians and reptiles). Most of the work to make the Pine Lakes Golf Course a top notch, environmentally responsible golf course has been done. The addition of the wildlife garden and several other planned Outreach and Education initiatives will help push the Pine Lakes Golf Course a step closer to certification.

Tags: conservation, environment, green, Jekyll Island gold, pine lakes
Posted in Beachscape, June 2008 | No Comments »