The race began with an email, sent by family friend, Linsey Pilon, to my mother, Diane Noble. This is an extremely elaborated version:

Cold New England turtles are heading to warm Georgia! Two loggerheads, one green, and seven Kemp’s ridley sea turtles are going to be driven non-stop to the Georgia Sea Turtle Center on Jekyll Island.

Five of the ten turtles’ journeys began at the University of New England’s Marine Animal Rehabilitation Center (MARC) in Biddeford, Maine. All five turtles were treated for cold-stunning, or hypothermia.*

Who were these fabulous five cold-stunned sea turtles? They were Denahi, Chiquita, Forest, Yoshi, and Petunia. All were originally washed ashore somewhere in Massachusetts (locations range), taken to the New England Aquarium in Boston, MA, and further transported to Biddeford, ME.

After their, “few month’s vacation from their wild lives” (rehabilitation), the turtles were brought back to the New England Aquarium. Why? They needed to pick up a few friends on their way to Jekyll Island, Georgia!

Route's release

Nine of the ten New England rehabilitated turtles were released on April 29^th, 2009. Route, a Kemps Ridley sea turtle, was not releasable at the time, but later released on May 30^th, 2009. For more information on Route, visit http://georgiaseaturtlecenter.org/our-patients/

Are you wondering why I turned my trip to Jekyll Island into a race with the turtles? I had been receiving email updates from Conservation International and National Geographic’ “The Great Turtle Race!” The satellite tagged leatherback sea turtles were tracked along their migration routes. When a turtle surfaced, the satellite transmitter on its back would send a signal to the satellite, and the turtle’s spokesperson would write a brief blurb about that particular turtle’s journey.

I was very excited to hear about the New England turtles’ trip to Jekyll Island because the excitement of The Great Turtle Race was still fresh for me. During my lengthy car ride, I thought about the turtles. How stressed would they be in the back of rescue vans? Were they as cramped as I was? Did they have any idea they were going to the free within 24 hours of arrival?

Another slice of my anxiety cake was that the turtles were coming from my hometown and my alma mater! It suddenly seemed like Jekyll Island, GA was the place to be. Even the turtles knew that! (My apologies for my anthropomorphisms.) Now that I am here on Jekyll Island, I understand why the turtles were sent here to flourish. The ocean is simply full of life! If I were a turtle, I would go where the food and the good accommodations (rock crevices) are. Wouldn’t you?

That completes my story of the race from New England to Georgia. I will have you know that the turtles arrived first and were released before I got to meet any of them, with the exception of Route. I suppose none of the cold stunned five wanted to share snowstorm stories, anyway.

Thank you for reading my blog.

Amanda Noble,

GSTC Sea Turtle Patrol Intern 2009

Have comments? Want to suggest a topic to me? Email me at amandanoble@me.com or add a comment to this BLOG. I will try to satisfy your requests for information by writing at http://georgiaseaturtlecenter.org/blog.

*Remember, turtles are reptiles. Their body temperatures are in direct correlation to their environments. If a strong current carries them too far north, they will be unable to keep themselves warm. Cold-stunning is exactly what it sounds like: the shutting down of the bodily functions due to extreme cold temperatures.