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. June 21: Totally Terrapins: Get to know the Diamondback Terrapin up close and personal through a live animal presentation. You will also learn about the threats they face and participate in a release! June 28: So YOU want to be a Sea Turtle: Sea turtles spend the majority of their lives in the ocean! How do they do it? Learn about the 5 species of sea turtles that visit Georgia’s coast and learn what makes them unique. July 5: Nifty Nesters: Sea turtles are egg-cellent nesters. Become a momma sea turtle and learn all about the nesting process by playing a fun and interactive game on the beach. You’ll also learn how they do it by building your own edible nest! July 12: Cracking the Crawl: Become a sea turtle detective and learn how to identify tracks in the sand and who they belong to. Sea turtles are not alone out there on the beach. Explore the beach environment and discover other critters who call the dunes home. July 19: Turtles on the Move: Where in the world do sea turtles go? They begin their lives on the beach and then spend the majority of their lives in the ocean. Sea turtle biologists use a variety of methods to follow sea turtles as they migrate through the ocean. Learn about the different tags we use and how you too can follow sea turtles online! July 26: It’s Tough Being a Sea Turtle: Discover the not-so-glamorous part of being a sea turtle and the difficulties they face. Through interactive role play and games, participants will simulate how humans contribute to the pollution of the marine environment. 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!Turtle Tours Night Walks Explore the beach at night, and learn about the amazing journey of the loggerhead sea turtles nesting along the Georgia Coast. These popular programs begin with a 30-45 minute presentation at the Georgia Sea Turtle Center about the natural history of sea turtles, followed by a guided beach tour (participants must provide their own transportation from the Georgia Sea Turtle Center to the beach). Turtle walks will be conducted June 1 – July 31 (Walks will not be conducted on July 4) with two nightly programs every day (8:30 and 9:30 P.M.). Depending on the nesting season, the concluding date may vary. Reservations are required as group size is limited by DNR permit restrictions and programs nearly always sell out many days in advance. Participants will have a limited amount of time to briefly explore the Exhibit Gallery before their presentation begins, but the hospital area will not be accessible. Cost: $10 adults (13+), $5 children (ages 4-12) Children under 18 must be accompanied by an adult Due to the time and nature of these walks, we require children to be at least 4 years of age. For the safety of the turtles, flashlights, camera and video camera lights are not allowed on the Walks. Night vision cameras are allowed. Walk Guides will have a special, turtle-friendly, approved flashlight.

Tags: Georgia Sea Turtle Center, hatchlings, jekyll island, night walks, sea turtles, turtle tours
Posted in Beachscape, June 2008 | 1 Comment »

Vida, the teenage loggerhead sea turtle that stranded in St. Augustine this winter, is on her way back to the sea. Today, at the Georgia Sea Turtle Center, she received her satellite transmitter, flipper tags and PIT tag and is resting quietly awaiting her ride to Amelia Island tomorrow.

Q: Where is Main Beach Park?
A: At the intersection of Atlantic Avenue and North Fletcher Avenue in Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island, Florida.
Directions to Main Beach Park from Interstate 95:
Exit at SR-200/SR-A1A and continue east for 12.1 miles
Turn right on CR-108/Sadler Road and continue 1.3 miles
Turn left at S Fletcher Ave/SR-A1A and continue north 2.0 miles to the stop light at Atlantic Ave

*Please note that date, time and location is subject to change at any time.

Don’t forget to stop and check out Wild Amelia Nature Festival while you’re there for the release…the Georgia Sea Turtle Center will be hosting a table, so drop by and say ‘hello’!

Tags: , georgia beach vacation, Georgia Sea Turtle Center, jekyll island, sea turtle, sea turtles
Posted in Diversions, Festivalgoer, Nature Connection | No Comments »

Dr. Bill Irwin, Director

Even after studying sea turtle navigation for 10 years I have no explanation for this. Bev, who was stranded near Panama City Beach, FL, spent a year there in treatment at Gulf World, was transported to the GSTC on Jekyll Island, Ga (over land, by vehicle), spent a few months here, was transported back to PCB, FL (over land, by vehicle) and released in November 2007, has actually found her way back to Jekyll Island!! Is this a coincidence? Probably. But it sure does show that fact is sometimes stranger than fiction!

Right: Bev’s entire satellite track. [Note: the dotted line across south FL is the tracking program’s best interpretation of the data because she was really cruising when she went around the end and we only received sporadic, low-quality transmissions.]

Below: The last few days.

Keep track of her movements at SEATURTLE.ORG:
http://www.seaturtle.org/tracking/?tag_id=80060

Tags: , jekyll island, sea turtles, The Georgia Sea Turtle Center on Jekyll Island
Posted in Diversions, In the News, Nature Connection, Press Releases | 1 Comment »

Adopt a Turtle

With your donation of $50 or more, now you can “adopt” one of our sea turtle patients. Current patients and already released patients with satellite transmitters are eligible for adoption.
When adopting a turtle, you will receive an official certificate of adoption, a letter from your sea turtle, a 5 x 7 photo of your sea turtle, bi-weekly updates from the Georgia Sea Turtle Center, and you name will appear as an adoptive parent on the Georgia Sea Turtle Center website. If you chose to adopt a current patient, you also have the opportunity to be a VIP at the release of you adopted turtle!

Volunteering

New volunteers are required to attend an Interest Meeting and 1 General Orientation Meeting before beginning their volunteer experience at the GSTC, to allow for the best possible introduction to the Center and volunteer responsibilities.
Focus Classes will be offered monthly and typically held on 4th Tuesday of every month at 7pm, with a few exceptions, in the classroom. ALL volunteers are welcome! March’s Focus Class will be on Monday, March, 24 at 7pm in the Classroom and will be conducted by Dr. Bill Irwin, Director of the Georgia Sea Turtle Center. He will be discussing the migration and navigation of sea turtles.

Join us for Turtle Tales

Turtle Tales, Saturdays at 10:30am, is FREE with general admission! There are so many books about sea turtles, it’s hard to choose! Our Turtle Tales program will introduce you to the many children’s books about sea turtles. This program involves a turtle-inspired book reading and craft for children of all ages. There will be a different book and craft each month. And yes, you can purchase the books in our Gift Shop! Join us in March as we read Seymour Sea Turtle Snaps Up Lunch by Matt Mitter and use Seymour’s favorite food, sponges, to paint your very own sea turtle!

Educating at the Georgia Sea Turtle Center

School group attendance was great, with approximately 200 students visiting the Georgia Sea Turtle Center in February! We took our ‘show on the road’ to Oglethorpe Elementary for an Outreach program for 200 1st and 2nd graders as a part of Georgia History Day! In February, the Georgia Sea Turtle Center Education Team attended numerous educational conferences throughout the state of Georgia, including the Georgia Science Teachers Association and the Georgia Middle School Convention, with more to come in March though July.

Behind the Scenes

Go to the other side of the Treatment Window, get a closer look at the patients, off of the pavilion walkway! Take a behind-the-scenes tour! You will visit food preparation areas, animal holding areas, and the treatment, X-ray and Surgery Rooms. Saturdays and Sundays at 2 P.M. on a first come first served basis,-Reservations are required. Call early or sign up in the Gift Shop-Group size is limited to 10 guests. (912-635-4444) Cost: $25/Adults - $15/Children (Must be at least 10 years of age). Price includes admission.

An Update on our New Patients!

Our newest patient is a green sea turtle named Charlotte, who weighed 12 pounds upon arrival. Charlotte was found on January 17, 2008 washed up on the beach at Cumberland Island. She was quickly delivered to the Georgia Sea Turtle Center by our Georgia DNR colleagues. Charlotte was the first sea turtle stranding of 2008 for the state of Georgia. The top of her shell was covered in barnacles and algae that were carefully removed. This revealed several old boat propeller wounds. We placed her in a shallow tank of water to test her swimming abilities and found out she was a floater; Charlotte could not dive or swim underwater. Her hind end actually floats higher than her front! Although not readily apparent after an x-ray, we suspect there might be damage to her spine. We are planning on doing a CT scan on her in the near future to give us a better idea of the extent of her injuries and long-term prognosis. Thankfully, Charlotte has been eating very well. She absolutely loves bell peppers and cucumbers.
The Georgia Sea Turtle Center has been very busy with turtle patients and we now have a full house. In fact, we divided several of the tanks up so we could fit 2 turtles in some of them. Griffin, a male loggerhead sea turtle, is finally showing interest in eating on his own. This is a huge step in his recovery. We are offering him seafood (fish, squid, crabs) throughout the day and are continuing to tube feed him an Ensure/Fish shake once a day.
Recently we performed health checkups on Griffin, Vida, and Spitfire, all loggerhead sea turtles at the center. Their examinations consisted of weighing and lab work. Griffin weighed in at 193.6 pounds while Vida weighed 91 pounds and Spitfire weighed 118.8 pounds. Vida and Spitfire are on the road to recovery and should be released sometime this spring.

Tags: , Georgia Sea Turtle Center, jekyll island, sea turtles
Posted in Beachscape, March 2008 | No Comments »