This is something from the last summer, when we went to Fethiye for holiday. Everything was great, but the most interesting part was conservation project that is based there. Its target to protect the hatchlings of loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta) from moving in a wrong direction right after hatching.
The Çalış beach in Fethiye is a nesting spot for these endangered species, but it's also a popular tourist destination with lots of cafes, shops and restaurants right along the seafront, which means lots of light and lots of potential danger for newly hatched turtles. The instinct tell them to move towards the sparkling light of the sea, which worked just fine in those day when the moonlit sea was the brightest thing in the vicinity of nests.
Unfortunately, with all the lights on the shore, ancient instict doesn't help the hatchlings anymore. They often crawl in the opposite direction from the sea and die without water.
The Sea Turtle Protection Project focuses on locating the turtle nests and putting protective barrier around them in order to intercept the hatchlings, collect them and put right into the sea. We often saw voluteers going with buckets along the beach late at night and checking the nests to see if there were some newcomers there. Also, there was an information desk with volunteers ready to answer your questions about turtles and the project. As far as I understood, it is tun by the Pamukkale University Sea Turtle Research Centre. Their website has some useful information, and on Dekamer facebook page you can find some old and recent photos.
And this is our own small hatchling from Fethiye.
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