Each year between the months of March and July thousands of female leatherback sea turtles come ashore to nest.  Besides laying precious eggs during their brief time out of the water, these turtles give us the opportunity to observe nesting behaviors and to give us the opportunity to gain obtain valuable research data.  Leatherback sea turtles are the largest sea turtle in the world measuring an average of seven feet in length and weighting about one thousand pounds.  Adult male leatherbacks have been documented to weigh 2000 lbs or a ton! As giant as these creatures are, their diet depends entirely upon jellyfish.  Known as the “Iron-man” of the sea turtles, leatherbacks dive the deepest and swim the greatest distances.  Their range covers all of the worlds oceans; however, their populations are unstable and their survival is threatened by many conditions both environmental (loss of habitat, food sources, predators) and human impacts (beach development, pollution, fishing industry especially the longline fisheries).  The Pacific leatherback is in greater trouble than the Atlantic and numbers have dwindled rapidly in the last decade and a half.

Here at the Georgia Sea Turtle Center, we have begun our sea turtle patrol of Jekyll Island’s beaches; our first nest of the season…a leatherback!  The GSTC has many affiliations and projects around the world for the conservation and protection of sea turtles.  One such program is the St. Kitts Sea Turtle Monitoring Network (SKSTMN) in St. Kitts and Nevis, a small island in the West Indies of the Caribbean.  In conjunction with Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine and the Wider Caribbean Sea Turtle Conservation Network (WIDECAST), the Georgia Sea Turtles sends staff and volunteers down each year to help with the Leatherback Sea Turtle Project, a monitoring program organized and run by Dr. Kimberly Stewart.  The GSTC staff have also conducted several health related workshops in St. Kitts and provide scientific and veterinary expertise to the program.

This year, several volunteers and staff at the Georgia Sea Turtle Center have will traveled down to help out with this project. Alicia Marin, our Education Coordinator traveled down in April and was able to establish educational sea turtle programs at hotels and resorts on the island while Steven Nelson, our Veterinary Technician, traveled down this past week to help with night monitoring and blood collection and processing for the nesting turtles.  Dr. Norton and Michelle Kaylor (Rehabilitation Coordinator) are assisting Ross University in the development of a small rehabilitation center.

Upon return from his trip to St. Kitts, Steven shared with us his experience. 

“This past week has been one of the most amazing experiences of my life, I had never anticipated the feeling you get when you first see a one thousand pound sea turtle emerging from the water on a moonlit beach.  Up close, these turtles are incredible, as if their size and strength isn’t enough, their artful instinct and behavior is amazing.  How such as giant creature can gently manipulate delicate eggs is nothing short of impressive.  Over eight turtles nested during the week of my trip, walking up and down the beach from 8pm-4am, it’s the adrenaline of finding a turtle that keeps you going.  Every turtle we came across was examined, measured, tagged and a blood sample was obtained.”  

Unlike other sea turtle species, leatherbacks get flipper tags in their rear flippers, these tags enable us to track the turtle each time they nest during a season and years to come.  Measurements of the turtle’s shell are taken to monitor growth rates.  Blood samples are collected from their rear flippers and provide information as to their overall health.  An assessment of their surroundings and location of the nests are noted.  “Due to unsuitable habitat, 3 of the 8 leatherbacks we came across needed their eggs relocated in which we relocated to suitable habitat away from high tide and erosion sites.” After about 58 days of incubation in the sand, hatchlings will emerge and make their way to the ocean where very few (1:1000) make it to adulthood.  The SKSTMN patrol team is there to help and excavates nests to save straggler hatchlings and assure that they all have a chance to at least make it to the sea without obstacles, environmental stresses or natural predation. 

“Besides spending long nights on the beach, I was also able to take part in a unique St. Kitts event called Agriculture Day, an annual event in which the entire country’s school kids are able to attend a fair revolving around animals, plants and the environment.  This was a unique opportunity because many of the students that were born and raised where leatherback sea turtles nest and frequent had no clue that they even existed.  We also shared with them the importance of their survival and the many dangers they face in the wild.“  

Even though they are endangered, the sale and consumption of sea turtle products is legal during certain months (open-season) in St. Kitts, which heavily impacts the sea turtle population.  Education is the first step towards conservation; it is difficult to change tradition and culture in a society so dependent on this resource; however, many of the local fishermen on the island have since learned of the importance of sea turtles in the ecosystem and have either discontinued these practices or have even joined the conservation efforts of the patrol/monitoring team.  Dr. Norton and Michelle Kaylor will be traveling to St. Kitts next October to place satellite transmitters on hawksbill sea turtles that would otherwise be eaten. The fishers normally killing the turtles will hopefully be engaged in the monitoring of the turtles after they are released. This is a pilot project that we hope will expand if preliminary results are successful.

“One of my most memorable moments of the trip was during our second night on the beach that week.  We were watching at 6 foot long turtle dig a nest chamber when we saw in the distance behind the vegetation line a group of dark shadows slowly approaching us.  In fear for personal safety we shined our flashlights towards the shadows and dozens of wild cattle were coming over to check out the commotion.  They get within five feet of the nesting turtle and began to intently staring at her as she nesting.   They were amazed and the look on their faces was priceless, it was one of the most unique interspecies experiences that I have ever witnessed.” 

Visit the following link for more info on the St. Kitts Sea Turtle Monitoring Network (SKSTMN).  http://www.stkittsturtles.com/Welcome.html

-Steven Nelson, Veterinary Technician

With the a new beach lighting ordinance soon to be in effect (amended in August 2008, grace period ends May 1, 2010), many Jekyll Islands residents and beachfront business owners came out for the 2010 “Sea Turtles and Lights” workshop held at the Jekyll Island Convention Center on March 17, 2010. Many approved turtle-friendly lighting distributors were in attendance to display their approved products and spread the word about wildlife-friendly lighting.

After Eric Garvey, Senior Director of Marketing, welcomed the participants, Dr. Terry Norton, GSTC Director and Veterinarian, kicked off the workshop with a presentation about the Georgia Sea Turtle Center; what it is, what we are all about, and what we’ve accomplished in 3 very short years. Next Mark Dodd, GADNR Sea Turtle Program Coordinator, brought us up to speed on sea turtle natural history and the research conducted on the Sidney Lanier Bridge’s turtle-friendly lighting.  To wrap up the program, GSTC Marine Field Programs Coordinator, Stefanie Ouellette, gave a educational presentation on understanding lights,how lights effect sea turtles and answered the question: What is a turtle-friendly light?

After the presentations wrapped up and all questions were answered, manufacturers/vendors from Wildlife Lighting LLC, Electro Elf, Acclaim Lighting, The Coppersmith, and Justice Design Group displayed their state-of-the-art, approved turtle-friendly products in eye-catching exhibits for the participants.

A few other manufacturers/vendors (Turtle Safe Lighting, Starry Night Lights, the Lighting Science Group and Eco Smart)  were unable to attend in person, but they did send us some sample products prior to the workshop to display.

You can find LINKS to these companies on our website, as well as many other links that might be helpful or interesting to you!  You can also visit our BEACH LIGHTING page on our website to learn and understand more about sea turtles and lights.

As successful as this workshop was, we are sure we can make the next one even better! Stay tuned for information regarding our next workshop coming up this summer…..

Sincerely,

The 2010 Sea Turtle Patrol Team

This past winter was very busy at the Georgia Sea Turtle Center.  One of the coldest winters in history followed by mass amount of cold stunned (hypothermic) sea turtles to strand throughout the southeastern United States.  Back in January, GSTC sent four staff members Dr. Terry Norton, DVM, Dipl. AZVM, Steven Nelson, CVT, Ashley Raybould and Simon Dilts, to the Gumbo Limbo Nature Center in Boca Raton to assist in laser and electrocautery surgeries being conducted to remove fibropapilloma tumors from 30 (thirty) green sea turtles (Chelonia mydas). The sea turtles were all affected by the mass cold stunning event in southeastern Florida where approximately 4,000-5000 animals were affected by the cold weather and low temperatures. Although not all of the cold stunned turtles presented with tumors when stranded, hundreds did and a majority of the stable patients underwent surgery.

Green Sea Turtle with eye tumors

Fibropapilloma is thought to be caused by a herpes virus and possibly involves some other environmental factor(s) such as pollution and climate change that appear to be causing the turtle’s immune system to be compromised. It affects almost all of the sea turtle species but is considered to be an epidemic in many green sea turtle populations. The problem is rarely seen north of Cape Canaveral, Florida and only a few cases have been documented in coastal Georgia. The affected turtles develop tumor like masses that can eventually cover the entire body if not excisedremoved. Even the eyes are subject to tumors; these tumors are the most concerning because they compromise the turtle’s vision and they eventually die of starvation. The most severe cases develop tumors in internal organs-these cases have a very guarded prognosis and usually require humane euthanasia. Techniques have been developed to use laser surgery to remove the tumors.  Laser surgery minimizes bleeding during and after surgery. Tumors can be removed from the eyelids and portions of the eye to improve vision. Tumor removal seems to stimulate the immune system and in many cases the tumors do not return. Recent studies have documented natural tumor regression in some turtles.

Dr. Norton performing laser surgery

The goal for all of these turtles was to removed the largest most compromising tumors under anesthesia, recover them, and rehabilitate them to the point where they are likely to do well in the wild. The turtles will be released near where they were found so there are not concerns about transmitting the virus to unexposed turtles. Four surgery tables were set up in a basement facility at Gumbo Limbo Nature Center in Boca Raton, FL. Four lasers and anesthesia machines were borrowed for the procedures. Several surgeons and ophthalmologists including Dr. Norton performed the 30 surgeries that day. Steven Nelson was one of the many certified veterinary technicians that performed general anesthesia on the turtles. Two of our AmeriCorps husbandry members, Ashley and Simon, monitored and successfully recovered all of the turtles. The team left for Florida on a Monday evening after work for the 6 hour drive, stayed in a hotel that night, worked for 8 hours on the turtles and then drove all the way back to the GSTC and arrived at 2 am. All participants were back to work at 8 am the next day taking care of the 35+ patients that are currently housed at the GSTC. This was a collaborative effort with numerous organizations including Disney’s Animal Kingdom, Gumbo Limbo Nature Center, the Loggerhead Marinelife Center, Shedd Aquarium, Pittsburg Zoo and Aquarium, local veterinarians and ophthalmologists, veterinary technicians, biologists, rehabilitators and volunteers. It was truly an amazing effort and great to be a part of the team.  In the future, the Georgia Sea Turtle Center hopes to expand their veterinary care facilities to include isolation and quarantine areas for fibropapilloma cases as well as to purchase or gain a donation of a laser unit to remove such tumors. There are currently only three rehabilitation centers that have the appropriate facilities and equipment to treat this condition in sea turtles.

-Steven Nelson, Hospital Technician

Marathon, Florida Keys

December 5 & 6, 2009

The Marathon Sea Turtle Hospital.

Each year, the Marathon Sea Turtle Hospital hosts an annual Sea Turtle Workshop at their facility in the Florida Keys. Sea turtle staffers and researchers, from all over the world, come together to discuss new data and interesting patient cases from the past year. As part of a small network of sea turtle hospitals, the Georgia Sea Turtle Center staff packed up and migrated south to join and share our experience and expertise with other facilities like ours!

Day one started off with formal presentations in true workshop style. The diversity of topics was unending: Leatherback blood mercury levels, neonate Australian Flatback behavior, 2009 nesting statistics, even future sea turtle facilities under construction. Of the 20 or so lectures, the GSTC staff had the highest Center representation with 5 presentations! There were so many changes at the Center to share since the 2008 conference: Dr. Terry Norton, Michelle Kaylor, Jeannie Miller, Stefanie Ouellette and Rachel Thomas spoke about the past, present and future of the GSTC, interesting patient cases, the start of the AmeriCorps program, sea turtle satellite tracking and the Adopt-a-Sea Turtle program at the GSTC.

Dr. Norton lecturing about the Georgia Sea Turtle Center at the Sea Turtle Workshop.

Day two of the workshop included a hands-on Necropsy (animal autopsy) lab. The brave GSTC folks had the opportunity to perform two necropsies: a sub adult Loggerhead entangled in fishing line and also ingested a two inch fishing hook with fishing line embedded into his intestine; the second, a Green who perished from the effects of fibropapillomatosis, a type of herpes virus. This virus is becoming an epidemic among sea turtle populations worldwide. Although sad and unfortunate, these turtle necropsies offered an unmatchable learning experience. We’ll be able to put that knowledge to use as we see more and more cases in the coming years.

Dr. Terry Norton, Simon Dilts, Michelle Kaylor and Jessica Self performing a necropsy on a Loggerhead sea turtle.

Overall, the short trip to Marathon was a great experience! I personally enjoyed learning about the other facilities and research, as well as meeting people who share the same interest and passion of sea turtle conservation. I also left feeling very grateful to be a part of the GSTC. This center has done so much for sea turtle conservation in a very small amount of time.

Thank you,

Jessica Self

GSTC Americorps Education Member

Caton

Caton and Talbot, 2 loggerhead sea turtles, will be released on Monday December 28, 2009 from the Cape Canaveral National Sea Shore. The water temperatures are too cold in Georgia for a release this time of year; however, in the coastal waters of Cape Canaveral the temperatures are still safe and suitable for a release. The release site will occur around 12pm on a beach on the north end of Cape Canaveral Sea Seashore, on the south end of the Volusia side. Both turtles are doing great and ready to go to their ocean home.

Talbot

There have been 200 sea turtles that have stranded along the New England coast since Mid-October and 60 turtles are being housed in just a few facilities. These were all cold-stunned cases. Over the past 2 weeks North Carolina has seen numerous cold-stunned turtles and all of their facilities are filled to capacity. Releasing Caton and Talbot will free up some much needed space at the GSTC to make room for 4 green turtles, a kemps and a loggerhead, which will arrive on Tues of next week.

We apologize for the short notice and tricky timing within the holiday season. As will all releases, this release is open to the public and we hope to see you there! Thank you for your understanding and support with this situation.

~Terry M. Norton, DVM, Director and Veterinarian

I recently traveled to Barbados, one of the most eastern windward islands in the Caribbean in late August. Prior to 1998, it was legal to kill sea turtles for food and take their eggs in Barbados. Subsequently, a moratorium was placed and these activities became illegal. A few years later, fisherman noticed that green turtles would eat fish parts that were being discarded off their boats. This situation has evolved into a lucrative business for hotels and other groups in Barbados. Hundreds of people pay to snorkel and feed the turtles. Unfortunately this activity has gotten out of hand and is now potentially having negative impacts on the turtles. During my visit, I was amazed how many boats and people were in the water feeding the turtles.

Green sea turtles (Chelonia mydas) are herbivores (plant eaters), feeding on sea grass and algae, after they return from their omnivorous (plant, invertebrate and fish eaters) pelagic life stage at about 4 years of age.

In Barbados, feeding them large quantities of fish parts has caused many of these turtles to become significantly over weight. Additionally, these turtles have become habituated to humans. Flipper tag studies in Barbados have shown that once green turtles reach a certain size class, many of them migrate to Nicaragua. It is still legal to take sea turtles for food in Nicaragua, thus these turtles are potentially easy targets.

This project was a collaboration between researchers from the University of West Indies, Ross University, the Georgia Sea Turtle Center, and the government of Barbados. The focus of our research was to capture 30 green turtles from 2 populations; a supplementally fed-with-fish group and a group that were feeding on algae and sea grass and not supplemented with fish. Turtles were captured by hand while snorkeling. A very experienced fisherman that previously captured turtles for food caught the majority of turtles and often dove 40 to 60 feet to reach them.

Blood samples were collected for plasma vitamins, minerals, lipids and other health parameters.

Physical examinations, morphometric measurements, and body weights were performed on each turtle.  We have been conducting a very similar study in loggerhead sea turtles in Georgia.

One turtle had a severe boat strike injury that involved the carapace and the plastron. I was able to debride (remove dead tissue) the wound and pack it with gauze.

We then headed to the grocery store and pharmacy to get some saline for flushing the wound and guess what else-not peanut butter, yes you got it-honey. Most of you know the amazing healing properties of honey if you have visited the GSTC. It pulls debris out of the wound because of its high glucose content (hypertonic). The bee produces an enzyme found in honey called glucose oxidase which converts glucose to hydrogen peroxide. Remember the Krebs cycle when you took biochemistry and you thought you would never need that information in real life? When honey comes in contact with tissue, the pH of the honey increases from 4 to 6, which causes this enzyme to be activated. There are several other properties of honey that assist in its ability to fight infection and heal wounds.

Sincerely,
Dr. Terry Norton,
Director and Veterinarian

June 16 marked the 2 year anniversary of the Georgia Sea Turtle Centers grand opening!   This year, we celebrated in true sea turtle style with a week of fun filled activities!  All events were filled to capacity and we were bursting at the seams with guests ready to celebrate with us! Monday evening at the Center, Director and Veterinarian Dr. Terry Norton gave an update on the Centers progress the last 2 years and where we hope to go from here. Tuesdays Birds & Bees chat with Lydia Thompson and Jim Gertis was a huge success! Guests peeked into the nests of 2 not-very-well-known creatures: the honey bee and the Wilsons Plover.  Movie-goers at Wednesdays Finding Nemo were not only treated to a big-screen hit, but freshly popped popcorn to munch on during the flick. The thought of helping keep our beach clean and an ice cream treat drew a crowd for Thursday mornings Beachsweep. And who could resist our fun-loving mascot, Scute the Loggerhead Sea Turtle? A visit from Scute delighted the young and young-at-heart at an early morning breakfast served on the Center lawn. Scutes visit was followed by a tour of the Center-in our pajamas!  

Despite scorching temperatures, we guesstimated over 1000 visitors joined us for the Saturday finale party at the Beachdeck. Festival-goers were invited to partake in a number of activities on the upper deck. This year, we had the pleasure of hosting Naturalist Georgia Graves, Birding Enthusiast Brad Winn, our friends at Tidelands/4-H & the Coastal ARK- all with so much to share! Don’t know much about nesting on Jekyll Island? If you had the chance to check out the goings-on, consider yourself an expert!

Sea turtles & Diamondback Terrapins, sharks & snakes, the gopher tortoise & other burrow-dwelling animals, American Oystercatchers & Red Knots, horseshoe crabs & even live beach critters were all featured as part of the educational exhibits. It looks like children of ALL ages participated in the fun!

The lower deck gave way to an impromptu dance party with Island Sounds DJ, Justin. Three go-rounds of the Kid’s Turtle Crawl obstacle course throughout the day called to beach athletes itching for a little fun competition. And a festival would not be a festival without a feast! Teddy gave the grillside fare a thumbs up!

We topped off the day with the successful release of Simone & Duffy, two rehabilitated loggerhead sea turtle patients that arrived at the Center just a month apart. After almost one full year in the hospital recovering from illness & injury, the two were returned to their ocean home. Track their ocean adventures at www.georgiaseaturtlecenter.org.

A huge thanks to our tireless volunteers & staff, the Jekyll Island Authority and YOU! Thanks for making this event possible!

~ Kelly OKeefe, Educator

In honor of our two year anniversary in June, the Georgia Sea Turtle Center and Jekyll Island are celebrating with an entire week of fun-filled events!  Nest Fest 2009 festivities kick-off Monday, June 8^th and continue throughout the week with our finale party on Saturday, June 13^th. 

Join us Monday evening at the Georgia Sea Turtle Center for a discussion with Director and Veterinarian, Dr. Terry Norton. From 5:30-7:00 pm, hear about the Georgia Sea Turtle Center-Two Years Later and Beyond; what we’ve accomplished since opening our doors and how we’re forging ahead with future plans. Free with paid admission to the center. Reservations required. 

Come back Tuesday evening, same time, same place for Turtles Are Not the Only Nesters on Jekyll Island. Island resident beekeeper Jim Gertis will talk about the benefits of honey followed by Lydia Thompson, Chief Naturalist for Wild Birds Unlimited, and her focus on Jekyll’s nesting colony of Wilson’s Plovers.  Free with paid admission to the center. Reservations required. 

Bring the kids Wednesday evening from 7:00-9:00 for GSTC Movie Night featuring Finding Nemo. Don’t forget your favorite pillow and blanket for this under-the-sea flick! Free with paid admission to the center. Reservations required. 

Help us clean up Jekyll’s beach as sea turtle nesting season is underway! Meet at the Beackdeck at 10:00 am for a Beach Sweep. No need to register, just bring yourself! 

Enjoy Breakfast with Scute and Pajama Tour Thursday morning at 8:30-10 am. Bring the whole family for a catered breakfast on the lawn of the Georgia Sea Turtle Center and a visit from Scute, the Loggerhead Sea Turtle Mascot! All kids are encouraged to wear their pajamas for an early morning visit the sea turtles! $11 per person, includes breakfast and admission to the Center. Reservations required. 

For the grand finale, head to the Nest Fest Party at the Beachdeck on Saturday, June 13 for sun, sand and a sea turtle release! Join the Georgia Sea Turtle Center Staff and local organizations from 12-4pm for interactive educational activities, arts and crafts, and the Kid’s Turtle Crawl!

Check out www.jekyllisland.com/nestfest for complete event details, schedules and registration information!

~Kelly O’Keefe, Educator

Follow this link to the video highlight of the Georgia Sea Turtle Center on CNN!

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/tech/2009/02/21/wolf.sea.turtle.rescue.cnn

The segment aired this morning, February 21, and will be featured again this evening.

Pumpkin and Varun made their first television debut and captured the hearts of thousands, we’re certain! Great job to Dr. Terry Norton and Erika Kemler who were both highlighted in the clip.  

Did you have the chance to see it first-hand? Send us your thoughts!

~Kelly O’Keefe, Educator

The video above is the laparoscopic camera inside of Vida, a loggerhead sea turtle (read on for more information about her procedure and recovery!). You are able to see her ovaries, the yellowish material at the beginning of the video, her lung which is the bubbly-looking pink stuff, her liver which is darker red near the bottom of the video. Watch until the end and you will see her heart beating along the left side of the video! Cool, a sea turtles heart!

The Georgia Sea Turtle Center veterinarian, Dr. Norton, preformed laparoscopy and endoscopy on two loggerhead sea turtles. These procedures use a small camera at the end of a scope inserted inside the animal through an instrument called a trocar. The trocar allows the veterinarian to utilize instruments such as a biopsy forceps in order to take samples of any organs or comprimised areas inside the animal. Both procedures went very well and the turtles are recovering nicely.

Vida’s procedure was first, starting at 8:00AM the morning of January 25th. The doctor injected the patient with anesthetic drugs and when she was sleepy enough he inserted a trach tube into her trachea and administered a gas anesthesia to keep her sleeping for the procedure. Laparoscopy requires the animal to be tilted on her side so that her organs fall away from the point of entry of the scope. Once inside, Dr. Norton had a good view of all major organs - kidney, liver, lungs, and we were even able to see the heart beating! Vida is a young female, as we were able to see her ovaries. Her procedure went very well and nothing was observed out of the normal so she was recovered from anesthesia and placed back into water later that day. She is doing great now, eating very well and active in her tank. Hopefully she will remain in good health and will be released this spring.

Griffin is another of our loggerhead sea turtle patients. His endoscopy procedure (endoscopes are long, flexible scopes with a small camera on the end and instrument channels built in) was after Vida had recovered. Dr. Norton placed the endoscope down his trachea (through the trach tube) and was able to see down to where the trachea splits into two bronchi. His suspisions were confirmed as a large amount of mucus was found in the trachea, indicating he has pneumonia. Dr. Norton also took the endoscope and passed it down Griffin’s throat and into his stomach, everything looked good up to that point. Upon moving the camera in the GI tract a little further, it became apparent that the duodenum (the first part of the small intestine) had an ulcer-like appearance. Where you should see nice healthy pinkish tissue, the area looked yellow with several blood spots. Biopsy samples were taken by passing a long biopsy instrument through the scope and into the area in question. The small forceps grabs a small portion of the tissue and tears it out, leaving very small trauma. After the biopsies were taken, the veterinarian decided to check out the other end. He took a different scope and passed it through Griffin’s cloaca. We now know Griffin is for sure a male (we suspected as much with his large, thick tail) because we were able to see his reproductive parts. Everything else on this end appeared as it should. Griffin was recovered from the procedure and is doing well. He has just recently started to show interest in eating on his own again, although hasn’t eaten anything yet. We have cut back on his tube feedings to once a day hoping to encourage him to eat on his own. He continues to get stronger and more alert each day. He is on antibiotics, gut motility drugs, iron, ulcer medication and pancreatic enzymatic powder to help with digestion.

Erika Kemler

Hospital Coordinator