This week we are sharing the release of a 220-pound loggerhead sea turtle from the Loggerhead Marinelife Center in Juno Beach …. What an exciting moment!
Like all sea turtle species, loggerhead turtles face many threats that impact their population. For over three decades, the Loggerhead Marinelife Center has been committed to the rehabilitation of sick and injured sea turtles. It’s awful to think some of the injuries are caused by humans, like the entanglement of fishline, prop strikes from boats and ingesting plastic bags.
We were excited to witness her release back to the ocean. The sea turtle patients are tagged and tracked. This provides the Center with important data, such as feeding areas, how many nests each turtle lays in a season and is a vital component to understanding trends in population size.
Rocky (approx. 25 year old female loggerhead) received six weeks of rehabilitation and care by the Center’s hospital team and was ready to make her return home to the ocean.
Loggerhead Turtles are slow growing, long lived marine reptiles that do not reach sexual maturity until they are 39 years old. After mating at sea, females return to the same nesting grounds where they were born to lay their eggs. The turtles lay 100-120 eggs each and after several weeks, loggerhead hatchlings emerge from the nest and enter the water together.
Enjoy the video!
Travel Update:
We are enjoying our stay in Juno Beach FL and have been taking many side trips. Next week we venture out to Key West for 4 days! We also plan to visit Vero Beach, Miami and hope to do snorkeling!
