turtle power

Present in almost every ocean across Earth, fossil evidence shows that sea turtles shared the planet with dinosaurs over 210 million years ago. 

 

Four species of sea turtles exist on the South Carolina coast, including loggerheads, Kemp’s ridleys, green sea turtles, and leatherbacks. Each of the four species that inhabit the state’s coast are endangered and are protected by state and federal law, according to the U.S. Endangered Species Act of 1973.

 

The loggerhead is the most common sea turtle to swim South Carolina’s waters, while the other three species make occasional cameo appearances. 

 

“For all three of those species, it’s really rare to have them nest in our waters, but we do have them on occasion in our waterways,” said Shannon Howard, who is a senior biologist at the South Carolina Aquarium. 

 

The reproductive season for the turtles begins in early spring, which lasts from May to August. Thirty days after breeding, female turtles crawl onto the beach at night, where they deposit an average of 120 white, leathery eggs, each resembling a ping pong ball.

 

Females place the eggs in a nest cavity that tends to be approximately 18 inches deep. 

 

Loggerhead turtles lay four nests per season, with each nest typically laid in two-week intervals. The turtles nest between May and October. 

 

With endangered status, state and national laws help protect the reptiles, but more assistance comes in the form of volunteer outreach. There are 30 total organizations in the Charleston area that are dedicated to sea turtle conservation.

 

The Island Turtle Team is a dedicated group of conservation-minded volunteers authorized by the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR) to protect nesting sea turtles and hatchlings on Isle of Palms and Sullivan’s Island. 

 

The organization must submit an annual permit to the SCDNR to have access to the turtles. The group’s 180 volunteers are responsible for locating and marking nests and eggs. To probe for clues, they must arrive at the beach in the early hours of the morning. 

 

“Without their dedication, we couldn’t do what we do,” said Mary Pringle, the project leader of the Island Turtle Team.

 

When searching for eggs, timing and location are important, said Kerrie Scott, a Daniel Island resident who has volunteered for the organization for 12 years. “The key thing is that you have to be out there in the morning, because you only have 12 hours to relocate these eggs. Where the turtles lay the eggs is really important. If it’s not in the dunes and it’s closer to the tideline, they then have to be moved and relocated,” Scott said.

 

After Turtle Patrol team members identify a nest, they are responsible for getting in touch with Pringle. 

 

Pringle and five other “Turtle Ladies” are granted full permission from SCDNR to locate and mark nests, relocate eggs, monitor and record hatching dates, rescue disoriented hatchlings, and perform inventories to collect data after a group of turtles have left the nest. 

 

The group also is tasked with taking injured adult sea turtles to the South Carolina Aquarium Hospital. If a sea turtle is found dead, the organization fills out a detailed report to the SCDNR stranding network, which includes photographs, GPS location information, and measurements of the turtle’s shell and width.

 

While COVID-19 concerns haven’t had any effect on turtle nesting or stranding, it has caused some changes in the volunteer organization’s programming.

 

“Our response and participation has been reduced,” Pringle said. 

 

Only two people are allowed to respond to any given turtle standing or respond to a nest call or perform an 

inventory.

 

“That makes our job a little bit harder with fewer people and social distancing rules from the DNR,” Pringle said. 

 

With predators such as ghost crabs, coyotes, and seagulls lurking on the beach, only one in every 1,000 sea turtles will make it from hatchling to adulthood. 

 

But doing everything possible to push each little hatchling out to the Atlantic Ocean is what counts the most. 

 

“My sister and I got to take the little turtle hatchling into the water to watch it go out. That was a really special moment,” said Caden Scott, Kerrie’s 12-year-old son.

 

Increased development and human impact also play a role in the fate of the turtles. 

 

For sea turtles to continue to survive in the ever-transforming coastline in the Charleston area, increased public knowledge about human impact on the environment is important.

 

“It’s possible for people to live in harmony with these animals even if they are living beachfront. The big thing is education. If everyone is educated about these animals and do what they can to help protect them, the turtles can nest normally in an inhabited beach,” Howard said.