Officials Investigate Incident Regarding Illegal Interference Of Caretta Caretta Hatchlings On Georgia Coast
An unsuspecting couple were in for a surprise on Monday night. Guests at the Admiral’s Inn in Tybee Island, Georgia, the two vacationers were out strolling the beach late that night, and happened upon a group of people attempting to capture a small group of sea turtle hatchlings making their way across the sand to the ocean. Although reports say that the couple had been drinking that night, they nevertheless immediately recognized the dangerous situation that the tiny hatchlings had fallen into and in a moment of swift thought, scooped them up and carried them back to their hotel room with plans to transport them to the local Marine Science Center the next morning. However, things didn’t go quite as planned, as when housekeepers were cleaning their room the following morning, they discovered the turtles which had been placed in a trash can filled with water for the night. The incident was immediately reported to the police and the turtles were rescued and brought to the Tybee Island Marine Science Center, where the couple had originally planned to relinquish them. Resulting from the fact that Caretta caretta is listed as threatened and there are laws instituted to protect the species, violators are subject to a potentially hefty fine, but the couple argues that they were merely attempting to rescue the vulnerable neonates from the other thoughtless beach-goers, and because of this, officials are continuing with the ongoing investigation into this complicated incident. As for the hatchlings, they are doing well and five out of the six turtles have already been re-released. The remaining animal will be housed at the Science Center for a couple more years. It was critical that the hatchlings be released as soon as possible because they desperately require a special hormone that gives them the strength to make it through their long journey to the Sargasso Sea.
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