Coastal North Carolina is a nesting site for loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta), green sea turtles (Chelonia mydas) and occasionally leatherbacks (Dermochelys coriacea). Sea turtles may live for several decades in the open oceans, but their lives are most at risk during the first few minutes after they emerge from the nest. Eggs deposited in nests on the beaches from May through August usually hatch at night from July through October. Hatchlings scramble quickly out of the nest and toward the ocean in a race for life against predators, disorienting light sources and other obstacles.

Rescued hatchlings in a short-term holding area.

The North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (WRC) oversees the monitoring of nests and hatchlings through an extensive network of volunteers and institutions, including the North Carolina Aquariums. Sometimes hatchlings are too weak to get to the ocean on their own, or are found far from the ocean if they’ve become disoriented. These hatchlings are brought to the Aquariums for a brief period of care prior to being released into the wild. Hatchlings recuperate in a carefully controlled environment, where Aquarists ensure that the animals eat and demonstrate healthy activity such as diving. Most of these post-crawl hatchlings are released as soon as they recover directly into the Gulf Stream offshore. Although detailed movements of juvenile sea turtles are not well known, it has been determined that they likely spend their first 15 to 20 years feeding and growing in warmer waters, such as the Gulf Stream, before they reach sexual maturity. It is estimated that one in 1,000 turtles will reach this stage.

Sea turtle populations have declined dramatically in recent decades. The Aquariums aim to help as many as possible survive, while educating the public about the plight of these reptiles and the wonder and beauty of their occasional visits to our beaches.