Confessions of A Sea Turtle Volunteer

(Note - this post was originally written for and posted on the World Nomad's Responsible Travel Blog)

I wasn’t always a sea turtle fanatic. I didn’t grow up with a pet turtle, snorkel with green turtles in Hawaii, or even watch the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. I had a pretty boring suburban US childhood without a lot of interaction with nature. (Don’t tell any of my colleagues, but I didn’t know the first thing about turtles when I first went to work with them.)

The first time I saw a leatherback turtle, I nearly fainted. Expecting a normal sized turtle with a hard shell, watching a dinosaur weighing close to 1,000 pounds dragging itself out of the water was a wake up call to me. Since then, I have become a bit of an turtle evangelist and have helped hundreds of people visit turtle nesting beaches to volunteer or just watch this amazing creature.

At first I painted a beautiful picture for prospective volunteers (moonlight strolls on the beach, giant turtles laying eggs, daytime free to lounge). We quickly found that to attract people not quite prepared for the experience. I now start with the bad stuff (bugs, rain, little sleep, long walks in soft sand) and let people know that if they can put up with that, it can be the most amazing experience of your life.

Volunteering with a sea turtle conservation project is very rewarding with benefits including personal satisfaction, resume material, lots of exercise, new friends from around the world, and great stories to tell. It should not be taken lightly though; it is hard work and the local organizations that run the turtle programs expect volunteers to fulfill their obligations.

Generally the projects require at least a week’s stay and will take people for up to 3 months. The organizations that we work with require volunteers to pay for food and lodging (their budgets are not big enough to cover those expenses) which ranges from $25 to more than $100 per day. For people who can commit to at least two months and have biology degrees or field experience, some projects offer research assistant positions at no daily cost.

What should a volunteer expect when going to volunteer on one of these projects?

First, the work is generally at night when the turtles come ashore. Most projects require volunteers to wear dark clothing and avoid using lights (including cameras) to avoid disturbing the turtles. On many beaches, volunteers work one of two four-hour shifts (8 to midnight or midnight to 4 am), walking up and down the beach with local researchers and other volunteers.

When a nesting turtle is spotted, the lead researcher will keep the group back until the turtle has started to dig the nest. At this time, the turtle goes into a trance-like state where they are so focused on digging and laying eggs that they have little sense of what is going on around them. If the beach has a hatchery (where eggs are protected from poachers or other animals), the eggs will be collected in a bag put into the nest. Most projects then collect data on the turtle including the species, length and width of the shell, distinguishing marks, and where on the beach it nests. Researchers will then put a tag on the turtle (either a metal tag on a flipper or a microchip injected into the shoulder). Other work at turtle projects include working in the hatchery (checking to see if hatchlings arrive), cleaning the beach of debris, or maintaining the research center. Learn more about volunteer activities here.

So what should an eager turtle lover think about before deciding whether to volunteer and where to go?

First, think hard about how much discomfort you can put up with. If you can’t stand mosquitoes and rain and won’t survive if you can’t check your email or phone, its probably not the right experience for you. If you have health issues that walking long distances can worsen, you may want to look for something else.

Second, think about what is most important to you, the scientific aspect or the conservation and cultural aspects. Some projects have strong research programs and nicer facilities but may offer less interaction with local residents and receive large numbers of volunteers. Smaller community-based turtle projects may not have as strong of a research program or facilities but need help more than other projects and can offer homestays with local families. More established programs tend to be more expensive as well. Also, do you want to be near a town where you can hang out on off days or an isolated beach far from civilization?

I often get asked, “Really how much does volunteering help the turtles?” My response is always, “A lot!” Unlike some volunteer programs that are set up more for the volunteer than the local organizations, turtle projects need lots of help walking long stretches of beaches for hours each evening. In addition, the income from volunteer programs generates a large portion of the budget of some of these projects; they wouldn’t have the funds to continue without them.

Perhaps most importantly, volunteers coming to these communities

to spend their time and money helps to convince local residents that the turtles are more valuable alive than dead. I’ve seen first-hand the change that can take place in a town once volunteers start arriving. That may be the most satisfying part of the whole experience, bonding with people of different backgrounds over the hard work of bringing endangered species back from the brink.