JEKYLL ISLAND, Ga. — Tiny sea turtles are getting a second chance at life thanks to a dedicated team caring for everything from fragile hatchlings to sick and injured adults at Georgia Sea Turtle Center.
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The center, located on Jekyll Island, is the only native reptile hospital in Georgia. Every patient has a story.
Meet Arugula and Lion, two sea turtles currently recovering after arriving at the center is debilitated condition.
“Debilitated is kind of just a big fancy word for they just weren’t feeling very well,” one staff member said.
The goal is simple: nurse the turtles back to health and release them into the wild where they belong.
Not all of the center’s patients are full-grown. Behind the scenes, staff spend part of each day doing what they affectionately call “baby time.”
Inside warm incubators, hatchlings are monitored through one of the most exciting stages of life. Some are still in the “pip” stage, when they’re just beginning to crack through their eggshells but haven’t fully emerged.
Each tiny turtle is photographed, measured and carefully observed before graduating to the water.
This season alone, the center has already helped 44 hatchlings make their way back into the wild.
Sea turtles do more than capture people’s hearts. They’re considered an indicator species, meaning their health reflects the overall health of the ocean’s ecosystem.
That’s why the center encourages everyone to help protect them through simple everyday actions, like reducing single-use plastics, properly disposing of trash and choosing reusable products whenever possible.
“Out in the ocean, they can’t really tell the difference between a plastic bag and a jellyfish,” a staff member said.
Visitors to Jekyll Island can also witness one of nature’s most unforgettable moments during nesting season.
Center staff regularly lead beach programs where guests may see mother sea turtles emerge from the ocean under the cover of darkness to lay their eggs.
The process can take as little as 20 minutes or stretch for a couple hours, depending on the turtle.
Now, as nesting season continues, another magical milestone is underway.
Hatchlings are beginning to emerge from their nests and make their first journey to the Atlantic Ocean, completing the remarkable life cycle that started months earlier.
There’s another fascinating twist happening behind the scenes. unlike many animals, a sea turtle’s sex isn’t determined genetically. Instead, the temperature of the nest decides whether hatchlings are male or female.
Because female sea turtles are more likely to be killed while crossing roads to reach nesting beaches, the Georgia Sea Turtle Center keeps its incubators slightly warmer, producing about 90% female hatchlings to help replenish the breeding population.
From incubator “baby time” to beach releases, every turtle cared for at the Georgia Sea Turtle Center represents another step toward protecting one of Georgia’s most iconic coastal species.
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