The GSTC has another new patient! Nikon the Contender, a juvenile green sea turtle, was found in Crooked River, near Cumberland Island, GA on March 29, 2008.

Some recreational fishermen saw something bobbing around in the water and went over for a closer look. They found the little 6 pound turtle swimming around unable to dive and called DNR. Mark Dodd went out picked him up and brought him to the GSTC.

During the drive over, Nikon was “buffaloing” his way around the tank and Mark deemed him a contender upon arrival. Education intern Amy was the lucky staff member picked to give him the rest of his name and we now have our first turtle with a title!

Nikon had an abnormal epibiota load and was a little lethargic in addition to his floating. Some initial bloodwork was done and radiographs were taken. Radiographs revealed air trapped in the coelomic cavity as well as a possible fecal blockage. Dr. Norton was able to remove 260ml of air from Nikon’s coelomic cavity. He is currently in fresh water to help remove the algae and barnacles, recieving antibiotics and Cisapride to help his GI tract. He is also getting regular shell cleanings and is eating on his own. Dr. Norton will continue to get him stabilized and then move forward with further diagnostics.

~Jeannie Miller Aquarist

Looking for an expert on water and the importance of water conservation? Ask any member of Georgia’s fourth grade classrooms from the Lower Savannah and Ogeechee River Basins! On Wednesday, March 19, 2008, selected 4th grade classes attended the 2008 Children’s Water Festival (http://www.winningwater.org) hosted at Georgia Southern University in Statesboro, Georgia. The purpose of the festival is to educate students about ground, drinking, and surface water (watersheds) and water quality in a fun hands-on atmosphere.

Senior Educator Alicia Marin attended the event and presented an activity she created for her Master’s Project, “Garbage in the Water.” Through role play, students simulated how humans contribute to pollution of the marine environment. Although these students live far from the beach (about two and a half hours away), we discussed how their behavior may impact animals that live in the ocean.

Each student was given a piece of trash commonly found on the beach. One by one the students presented their item to their classmates, and discussed how it could have ended up in the ocean and what harm it could cause to the animals that live there. And then, they had to pollute the “Ocean” by throwing in their item! By the end of the activity, we had an “Ocean” that no one wanted to swim in, and quickly discussed how we could remedy and even have prevented this situation from happening in the first place. This activity demonstrates that just as humans may contribute to the problem of marine debris, we can also be part of the solution. “Garbage in the Water” will be featured as one April’s daily programs offered at the Georgia Sea Turtle Center.

Winning Water proved to be an interactive day of learning and 100 students “adopted” their own rubber sea turtles to take home that day. The Georgia Sea Turtle Center was grateful to have been apart of this enlightening event and we look forward to participating next year in 2009, when Winning Water visits the coast in Brunswick,Georgia.

~Alicia Marin, GSTC Senior Educator

DESIGN THE COVER FOR OUR COLORING AND ACTIVITY BOOK!

The Georgia Sea Turtle Center is creating their very own coloring and activity book! We want to make this book personal and unique to our center and what better way to do that than to ask young sea turtle enthusiasts to design the cover!

Requirements:
-ages 13 and under
-must fit on an 8 X11 sheet of paper
-cover can portray any aspect of the Georgia Sea Turtle Center (i.e. our hospital, sea turtle conservation, education, nesting, etc. ) Be creative!
-please include name, age, address, phone number, email (if you have one) and school
-design must be submitted by April 30th, 2008

-mail it to:
Georgia Sea Turtle Center
Attn: Maura Larson
214 Stable Rd.
Jekyll Island, GA
31527

-or email attachment to: maura.larson@gmail.com

The winner will be announced at Nest Fest (Saturday, May 3rd) and also will be contacted by phone or email.

-First place winner will have their design as the cover of The Georgia Sea Turtle Center Coloring and Activity Book and will receive a GSTC Adventure Pack.

-Second and Third place winners will also receive GSTC prizes.

For more info: please call (912) 635-4076 or email Maura Larson at maura.larson@gmail.com

This past Saturday, Easter came to Jekyll Island with an outdoor event sponsored by the Jekyll Island Authority! Of course the GSTC participated in the Spring event with a table of super-cool specimens for festival-goers to see. And what would a festival be without a recycled craft?! The education team craftily designed ‘turtle wobbles,’ a cardboard cut out turtle that children could decorate with epibiota stickers, including crabs, anemones & barnacles. Once stuck atop a plastic Easter egg, the turtles came to life and swam home with children of all ages.

That same afternoon, the GSTC made its second stage debut with a riveting performance filled with suspense, action and a heart-warming rescue. How lucky we were to have a sea turtle veterinarian right in our own audience! Check out the video clip of this emergency sea turtle rescue.

Here at the GSTC we not only work with turtles, but also occasionaly have exciting visitors – snakes! The most recent visitor was a female Canebrake Rattlesnake, a species more widely known as the Timber Rattlesnake but that is more widely referred to in coastal areas as Canebrakes.
This beautiful creature, now named Terry, is a participant in a research project at Palmetto Bluff in Bluffton SC that uses radio telemetry. Therefore, the purpose of today’s surgery was not to make a sick animal better but to implant a radio transmitter so that we can follow the snake wherever it moves to learn more about their lives. We implanted the transmitter in her body cavity. Don’t worry; Terry was asleep during surgery and can eat or have babies with no problems from the transmitter!
With Terry’s help, we are learning how animals respond to construction of a residential and recreational development. Terry also helps to teach biologists at Palmetto Bluff and all over the world on how to cohabitate with wildlife so that both the people and the wildlife have homes. Terry also teaches people that snakes are not so bad and aggressive, in fact, they are quite fascinating!

~ Kimberly Andrews Science and Education Director, Palmetto Bluff Conservancy

We say it all the time, but we have to say it again…the volunteers at the sea turtle center are the life blood of all the work we do here.

Not only are they super hard workers but our volunteers also help to bring HUGE smiles to our faces. Most recently, the staff were up to some silliness wearing a custom made turtle cape around the hospital. The volunteers working that day took the fun to a new level and showed the super heroes they really are!

So when you come to the center you’ll see them in gallery answering questions, the gift shop running register, and in the pavilion scooping poop. They are all here to help and make each day a treasure! Be sure to stop and chat with the sea turtle super heroes!

While sea turtle biologists typically use the term “arribada” to describe the mass nesting of hundreds of thousands of sea turtles (Kemp’s Ridleys and Olive Ridleys), today we use it to describe the arrival of 10 students from the University of Central Florida. These dedicated students, are here at the Georgia Sea Turtle Center for one week for an Alternate Spring Break. Instead taking a typically spring break vacation, laying on the beach enjoying the sun, they decided to spend their spring break with us, volunteering!

And their excitement is contagious! They even showed sea turtle love by decorating their van! You may have seen them on their journey this morning, as they tried to encourage other travelers to “honk if you love sea turtles!”

The UCF Group will be volunteering in all aspects of the GSTC, as well as assisting in other departments of the Jekyll Island Authority. Projects include activities such as Beach Monitoring Preparation, Landscaping, Marketing, and Environmental Education/Earth Day Preparation. After a brief orientation, we let them get settled and sent them off to explore Jekyll Island. But not before presenting them with their special turtle-riffic gift bags!

We are truly grateful for their generosity and welcome the opportunity to work with these amazing individuals. Stay tuned for future updates from the students themselves as they talk about their experiences at the Georgia Sea Turtle Center!

~Alicia Marin, Senior Educator

Operator: “9-1-1 what is your emergency?”

GSTC: “You have to help me! Turtles… there are so many!”

Operator: “Ma’am, I’m going to ask you to calm down. What seems to be the problem?”

GSTC: “Four sea turtles just arrived, they are bleeding, lethargic, unresponsive, emaciated and I think one has a bone showing! … Oh, please hurry…”

Operator: “We are sending a team to you right now. Stay with me on the phone ma’am, they will be there shortly…”

Today, Brunswick High School’s Oceanography Class joined the Georgia Sea Turtle Center staff to assess and care for their “new patients.” These patients are actually plush sea turtles that have been created as part of a new Education Program, Sea Turtle Rescue 911. This program is an interactive and fun way to learn about the various reasons why sick and injured sea turtles are brought to our Hospital. Four mock sea turtle patients entered the hospital at approximately 12:15pm with symptoms of diseases such as debilitated turtle syndrome, cold stunning, boat strike and complications associated with marine debris.

The Sea Turtle Rescue 911 program is designed for smaller groups of older students (Middle and High School students, and no more than 25 participants), where students use critical thinking skills to determine why each patient has stranded. Each team of budding “veterinary” students was presented with a Case including the following materials; the patient, x-rays, stranding sheets, and basic information. Within their team, the students assigned each other a role (Veterinarian, Vet Technician, Vet Assistant, and Transcriptionist).

After comparing their Case to the other teams, the students explored the Exhibit Gallery and Rehabilitation Pavilion to collect additional research in order to assist in their diagnosis of their patient. Each team then presented their Case to the rest of the class, while Education and Veterinary Staff discussed treatment options for each Case.

GSTC: “Oh thank you, thank you!! The sea turtles have been saved!”

Operator: “You’re welcome ma’am and THANK YOU!”

For more information about this program or any of our Education Programs, please visit our website or call the GSTC Education Team at (912) 635-4076.

~Alicia Marin, Senior Educator
~Amy Hupp, Education Intern

**A special thanks to the entire GSTC Education Team (Sarah Mathias, Kelly O’Keefe, Maura Larson, Emily Goczalk) and GSTC Aquarist, Jeannie Miller, for making this program a huge success!