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INTERESTING TURTLE FACTS |
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- Turtles are reptiles and records show their existence during the days of the dinosaurs 200 million years ago.
- Loggerhead turtles nest in the Carolinas but other sea turtles feed in our waters. They are called Loggerheads because they have the largest head of all sea turtles. They can lay up to 7 nests in one season and usually nest every two years.
- Nesting season begins on Brunswick County Beaches in early May thru August. Baby turtles begin hatching in late July and continue through October.
- Overdevelopment of beaches limits nesting sites for all sea turtles.
- Mortality rates for turtle eggs are high due to predation by ghost crabs, raccoons, & foxes. Some nests are laid to close to the tide line and if not relocated will be lost.
- High mortality rates for hatchlings, juveniles and adult turtles are commonly due to predation by sharks, birds, fish, fishing gear(long line), ingestion of marine debris, boat strikes, trash on beaches and pollution.
- Only one hatchling in a thousand make it to adulthood (15-25 yrs) They can live to be over 100 yrs old.
- Loggerheads use their powerful jaw to crush their food. They most often eat clams, jelly fish, squid, crustaceans such as crabs and spiny lobsters. Most of the nesting takes place in the evening or early morning from May through August. Darkness serves as added protection for nests as well as the hatchlings. Once a nest is laid it takes 55 to 90 days for the hatchlings to emerge.
- Hatchlings emerge from their nests and are drawn to light (moonlight and phosphorescence from the ocean). Street lights, house, motel/ hotel lights may cause them to become victims of ghost crabs, sea gulls and the heat of the sun(if they emerge in daylight). Hatchlings swim to the gulf stream and eat the sargassum sea weed which they also use for shelter from predators. They also eat baby shrimp and jellyfish. Hatchlings will return to the same beach where they were born to nest if they make it to adulthood. Remember only 1 out of 1,000 survive to adulthood.
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Interesting Things to See Near Sunset Beach: |
| New Sea Turtle Exhibit at Museum of Coastal Carolina |
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| The Turtle Crawl, a new exhibit at the Museum of Coastal Carolina, opens on Friday afternoon, June 30. A media preview will be held from 11-Noon. Volunteers and members may preview the exhibit from noon-1:00 before it opens to the general public. |
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| Designed by Warren Kimsey & Associates, the exhibit is a model of a sand dune with a mother loggerhead turtle laying a nest and also hatchlings emerging from a nest. Visitors may walk through the dune to view the nests from the interior or watch a video about the life cycle of loggerhead turtles. Funds for The Turtle Crawl exhibit were raised through the Around the World Winefest 2006. |
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Satellite Tracking of NC Loggerheads |
| In collaboration with NC Aquariums, NC Wildlife Resources Commission, and the NSCU School of Veterinary Medicine, the Karen Beasley Center for Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation released 4 rehabilitated loggerheads with satellite transmitters from Topsail Beach on Wednesday, June 8, 2005. |
| You can track the movements of these four turtles on either of these websites: |
SEATURTLE.ORG: www.seaturtle.org/tracking/index.shtml?project_id=81
(just click on a turtle's name to get a map that is updated daily) |
TURTLE TRAILS: www.ncaquariums.com/turtletrails/index.html
(click on "Maps" on the right hand side of the page, and look for Obey, Shinn, Bogue and Atlantic) |
| There are also some photos of the satellite transmitter attachment process and release of these turtles, available here: www.seaturtle.org/cgi-bin/imagelib/index.pl?cat=599 |
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SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT |
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In the mythology of India the survival of the sea turtle insures the survival of the world. The Indian myth states that the earth rests on the back of three elephants. These elephants in turn stand on the shell of a giant sea turtle which swims in an infinite sea. It is believed that if the sea turtle disappears the world will end.
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