Facts About Sea Turtles

• Sea Turtles can live to be 100 years old.
• Sea Turtles breathe air, but they can hold their breath up to 5 hours.
• Sea Turtles lay their eggs at night.  The mother protects her eggs by putting the nest above the tide mark and covers the eggs with sand to keep them safe & warm.
• It takes several days for the hatchlings to dig out of the sand.  The first turtle out is called the ‘scout’ and makes sure that they emerge at night when it is coolest and few predators can spot them.
• Hatchling turtles find their way to the ocean by looking for the brightest light, which is usually the moon over the ocean, or the horizon line on the water.
• Sea Turtles face many dangers, only 1 turtle out of every 1000 hatchlings lives to be an adult.

Things you can do to Help Turtles Survive

• When you go to the beach, take all your garbage with you.  Sea Turtles sometimes mistake plastic bags for food.  They can die if they eat plastic.
• Don’t bring balloons to the beach.  Balloons can end up in the ocean and injure marine life.  Sea Turtles might eat a balloon if they think it looks like food.
• Turn out bright lights on the shoreline so the brightest light the turtles see is the moon or horizon line on the water.
• Never touch or harass a sea turtle either in the water or on land
• If you see a sea turtle that is stranded or injured in the Virgin Islands, call STAR (Sea Turtle Assistance and Rescue) at 340-690-0474