
The Georgia Sea Turtle Center is proud to present our first ever Sea Turtle Camp! We are offering two sessions; a morning session for 6-9 year olds and an afternoon session for 10-12 year olds. Each day is filled with games, crafts, educational programs, and of course, a yummy snack! Our Campers will learn everything there is to know about sea turtle biology, conservation and the threats that they face through our interactive, 5 day camp.
Today our Campers received an Introduction to Sea Turtles, learning about the Amazing Adaptations that sea turtles have to survive in their ocean home, specifically the 5 species that are common to Georgia. Read below to learn what our Campers learned today;

Morning Campers (Left to Right: McEver, Reilly, Jackson, Hanna, Ashley, Sydney, Faith
“I learned that the Kemp’s Ridley is the smallest.” ~McEver
“The Leatherback is the largest in the world!” ~Reilly
“I learned about the 5 types of sea turtles that come to Georgia.” ~Jackson
“I learned about sea turtles swallowing food. They have little spines that hold the food, so they can spit the salt water back out!” ~Hanna
“I learned that the top half of the shell is called the carapace and the bottom half is called the plastron.” ~Ashley
“Green sea turtles’ heads are little. Hawksbills have a pretty shell on their backs.” ~Sydney
“I learned that Leatherbacks eat jellyfish.” ~Faith

Afternoon Campers (Left to Right: Juliana, Ciara, Colton, Alex, Brooke, Zoe, Emma, Jenna)
“I learned that Leatherbacks dive 4,000 feet in the water. That’s why they have soft shells, so they won’t crack.” ~Juliana
” I learned that there are 7 types of sea turtles found worldwide and 5 that live in Georgia.” ~Ciera
“The Leatherback is the biggest turtle and dives the deepest.” ~Colton
“Leatherbacks have a soft shell.” ~Alex
“I learned about how many sea turtle species there are - 7!” ~Brooke
“Epibiota means things on a turtle’s back.” ~Emma
“I learned that the reason a Leatherback sea turtle has a soft shell is because they have to dive deep under water. If their shell was hard, it would crack!” ~Jenna
“That the stuff that lives on the back of a sea turtle is called Epibiota and it’s good for camouflage.” ~Zoe
Stay tuned all week long to learn more from our Sea Turtle Campers! I am particularly excited about Sea Turtle Camp, since I developed this curriculum for my Master’s Thesis at Duke University. While it was originally created for the Caribbean region, this curriculum can be used anywhere! I am thrilled that Sea Turtle Camp has come to Georgia and that it will help children became as passionate as I am about sea turtle conservation.
~Alicia Marin, GSTC Education Coordinator