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Foundation Turtugaruba:

Sea turtle nesting season is underway

Please notify Turtugaruba immediately:
Turtle Hotline 24/7 (+297 5929393).
And a special request to the people who
have to go out at night (such as Police
and Security) to continue respecting the
following points. When you see a sea turtle
that comes / is ashore to nest:
• Contact Turtugaruba immediately
(Turtle Hotline +297 5929393)
• Do not approach the sea turtle, but
keep a distance (at least 15 meters).
• Do not use any kind of light, such as
ORANJESTAD — While we humans are currently at home a flashlight, flash camera or phone
in this COVID-19 period, the sea turtles continue to follow screen. Turn off all lights in the area
their natural routine. There are five Leatherback (Driekiel) and never direct light towards a sea
nests on the west coast of our island already, four at the turtle.
Eagle Beach / Low Rise Hotels area and one on Palm • Limit movement and noise around the
Beach. sea turtle to prevent distraction.
• Make sure that the sea turtle can re-
In recent years we rarely saw a turtle nest on Palm Beach, turn to the sea undisturbed after nest-
but this used to be an important nesting area. In the 1990s ing, do not stand between the sea
and early 2000s, Turtugaruba, (the Aruban foundation for turtle and the sea. The total nesting
the conservation of sea turtles) has led many Leather- process takes an average of 2 hours.
back hatchlings (baby turtles) to the sea on that beach. For more information, please contact Tur-
Under the current circumstances of a quiet beach and tugaruba:
less light at night, it is possible that the adult Leatherbacks TURTLE-HOTLINE: + 297 5929393 E-mail: tur-
will return to laying eggs on Palm Beach this season. tugaruba@hotmail.com Facebook. q
Leatherback sea turtles that nest in Aruba do not live in
the Caribbean Sea, but in the North of the Atlantic Ocean Share your message from home
and were born on the Aruban beach. When a Leather-
back female is mature (after 20 - 30 years) she returns to
her native beach to lay eggs during the nesting season ORANJESTAD — In these difficult times Last but not least: check out our web-
(March to July). A Leatherback lays an average of seven we reach out to our friends abroad who site and Facebook page! Thank you
nests per season. After the last clutch she leaves again for were supposed to spend their tropical for supporting our free newspaper, we
the cold waters of the Atlantic Ocean where she will stay vacation on Aruba or who had to break strive to make you a happy reader
for two or three years before returning for another season. up their vacation due to the COVID-19 every day again and look forward to
Leatherbacks and all sea turtle species are endangered situation. Aruba Today invites you to have you here with us soon again! Stay
species worldwide and need our protection. Like every send us your picture and words ex- healthy and keep safe! q
year, nests from 2020 are marked with DOW's well-known pressing your memory of our island or
red and white barricades. The nest can hatch after 60 to your dream vacation for the future.
70 days of incubation. At the moment our beaches are
quiet, but what will the situation be like in two months? Full Send us your picture(s) together with
of people and more light at night? completing the sentence: Aruba to
Artificial light and sea turtles do not go well together. The me is …….. (Email: news@arubatoday.
adult sea turtles feel frightened by artificial light, causing com). Please do note: By submitting
them to not come up the beach far enough to find a photos, text or any other materials, you
good nesting place. If a sea turtle is disturbed during mul- give permission to The Aruba Today
tiple nesting attempts, she might even give up and drop newspaper, Caribbean Speed Printers
the eggs into the sea. That nest then is lost. and any of its affiliated companies to
use said materials, as well as names,
When a nest hatches in the night after two months, the likeness, etc. for promotional purposes
little hatchlings are attracted to artificial light, and they without compensation.
will not reach the sea on their own due to disorienta-
tion. What to do to protect the sea turtles? With Shelter In Today we share a great picture from
Place's rules in place during the day and Curfew at night, Gail Guarini (U.S.A.). She writes:
people are unlikely to find a sea turtle on the beach. “We miss our home away from home!
However, while walking on a beach during the day for Hope to be at our one Happy Island real
one's own physical health, sea turtle tracks or a nest may soon. Prayers sent to our Aruba family.”
be observed.