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hatchling sea turtle, Olive Ridley Sea Turtle, Playa San Miguel Costa Rica, Where's My Backpack NEW
A NEW DAY – Dawn at Playa San Miguel, Costa Rica
These images show olive ridley sea turtle hatchlings experiencing the dawn of their first day of life. The little one below has just emerged from its nest at a nursery at Playa San Miguel, Costa Rica.
WAKE UP WORLD, IT’S A NEW DAY!
It’s fascinating to watch the little ones emerge from the sand; they immediately turn to the sound and aroma of the ocean and follow its call.
“I think I can, I think I can!”
I KNOW I Can, I KNOW I Can!
Like a baby mammal in search of its mother’s first milk, the hatchling follows the call of the ocean.
OLIVE RIDLEY SEA TURTLE HATCHLINGS
Ahhhh! Home Sweet Home!
A few days after the hatchlings have returned to the sea, the nest is exhumed, and biologists inspect and collect data. Every so often a (trapped?) runt of the litter emerges!
How magical it is to witness the awakening of an almost-dead hatchling!
Within minutes, it too follows the call of the ocean!
Several times along its journey, it stops and imprints, perhaps noting the precise gps location of its beach of origin.
Life teaches tough lessons, and the waves batter the hatchling until it is strong enough to continue forward.
What joy it is to watch it master the lesson of swimming! This one regained its strength and swam like a champion!
Ignoring my running shoes and jeans, I waded deeper and cheered it on!
See other examples of “new’ at Ailsa’s Where’s My Backpack.
All images are owned and copyrighted by me; please reconsider before right clicking and uploading to Pinterest or other sites.
Thanks & Happy NEW Year!
Lisa/Z
Reblogged this on The ObamaCrat.Com™ and commented:
I kinda fell in love with Sea Turtles when first living in Sugarloaf Key years ago….thank you Zeebra Designs & Destinations for this post. I want to wish you, your family & friends a wonderfully joyous and healthy, safe, fun Happy New Year….Namaste
hey! i am sure that i replied to your comment, though it must be swirling round somewhere in cyberspace!
thanks so much, and i am glad that you enjoyed this post. i’m about to post one very similar again for the let’s be wild competition, so bear with me! grracias! lisa/z
How neat to see that real and up close.
thank you! it’s even more amazing to witness in person. those little tanks of energy are amazing!
z
Great photos! These little critters are amazing.
yes they are amazing. thanks so much for your comment! lisa/z
These pictures do indeed capture the joy and spirit of new life. A wonderful way to start the new year. New energy, new adventures.
thank you so much! yes, a new year, new energy, new adventures – may your year provide all of the above for you!
thanks so much for your comment!
Amazing – thanks – you know not too many of this can see this. I love the point where the turtle launches into swimming – and would have ignored shoes and jeans too, for sure!
for sure you would have been wading and escorting that little turtle as well! when jeff (the biologist) and i escorted one runt that was having a very difficult time, when it finaly started swimming and gained strength, we looked out and saw an adult turtle not too far away. we both felt sure that it was near to take the next stage of the escort. it really touched my heart.
z
Oh, bluebrightly said it best, “Amazing……!
I’ll say it again…AMAZING!!!
I feel this is a wonderful metaphor for the ending of a year and the beginning of a new one. thank you for these evocative images, happy new year to you too, big hug, Alexandra
you are so right! i have a post scheduled to come out soon, and it’s about ano viejo, when we say goodbye to the old and step into the new year. thank you so much for seeing that metaphor!
happy new year! z
your post got me thinking about it! and how we feel a bit uneasy at the start of the new year but slowly start to get the feel of the waves…me llegó hasta el corazón!!
very true! i have no trouble doing that, thank goodness! here’s to 2013!
Oh, what a wonderful post! Perfect for the theme, and so uplifting. Happy New Year!
A very beautiful post. I’ve lived in Costa Rica five years now but still haven’t had the opportunity to see turtles. Looks like I’ll need a better camera than the one I’ve got. Many thanks for these lovely images. Happy New Year!
i have friends at san miguel that i hope to point in your direction. for sure you will cross paths at some point, and i am sure they would love to keep you informed when the turtle nesting gets busy next year. they witnessed an arribara this past year at a nearby beach (corozalito)
thanks so much; i loved your post about the annual bird count as well.
z
Newness in perfection here, Lisa. Fabulous shots! How many would there be all together?
Happy, happy New Year!
Thanks, amiga! After spending 12 years in the ocean, the turtle returns to that beach and begins her egg-laying duties. Up to 80 eggs are in a nest, though all do not hatch. A more scientific article is here http://zeebradesigns.wordpress.com/2012/03/31/the-red-light-district/
from an article i wrote for Costa Rica Outdoors.
Grrrrrrrrrracias! z
Thanks, Z. xx
love your stories and photos of the tortuguitas…a few years back we had the wonderful opportunity of helping to release the bebes in Cancun, Mexico. The eggs are collected, then incubated and right after hatching released to make their way to the sea. Amazing.. Happy new year amaiga !
it’s amazing how many people volunteer each year around the world. it’s also sad that the turtles’ nesting grounds are being squeezed out. light pollution from modern man is a growing problem. hmmm, i wonder if there are any turtle nesting beaches along that proposed new road?
z
what a fabulous series of iimages…we used to have this happen every year in Queensland…it is quite a sight to watch
thanks so much; i’m glad you enjoyed the images of the turtles! are they vanishing from ueensland? over on the pacific side of latin america, they’re losing their habitat to man; the light pollution is growing problem, and the shrimping industry kills a lot as well. poor maadre tierra y ocean!
Adorable one my friend , Happy New Year to you 🙂
thank you, jake! same to you!!!z
Wonderful photos Lisa, have a wonderful 2013! Are you back in CR now?
hey dear friend!
no, i am in ecuador! are you in canada?!!!
it would be so great to see you!!!!
lisa/z
That is SO cool! How exciting. This went on in Florida too. I often saw where nests were marked to protect them but I was never lucky enough to see hatchlings. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qy6DVUikTPs A friend of ours made a great video of hatchlings making their way into the sea. Check it out. That first sunrise photo is absolutely breathtaking!! So gorgeous!
thank you! i think i left home at four thirty to get in place for that sunrise! i always love peeking at the nursery at daylight to see if any hatchlings emerged from the sand, and to see how many new nests the biologists and volunteers found during the night. i missed this season, drats! z
A wonderful event to witness. They are remarkable creatures. And, yes, how do they imprint their location?
the biologists aren’t really sure what happens.. the little turtles will be crawling along and suddenly stop and sort of put their noses to the sand and ‘buck’ their backs toward the sky, then they resume. it’s sort of like a hiccup! the biologists think they’re noting gps or maybe the distinct smell of that beach. in a dozen years or so, they return to that beach.
That’s phenomenal. If we could copy that we’d never get lost in a a car park searching for our car. I suppose it’s possible that long ago we had a better sense of direction or a better homing instinct;perhaps the great Polynesian sea farers are a good example.
for sure we had a much-better navigating system, and i fear that most are losing even more. with the gps gadgets, people no longer pay attention to the sun or keep a sense of direction!
What a wonderful post Z 🙂 🙂 🙂
you’re welcome; you would have been there with those turtles for sure, and you would have been dodging those big waves as well! thanks! z
Thanks. You are great !!!! and very Happy New Year to you too !!!!!!!!
may 2013 bring you good health and an amazing future! you’re a survivor, dear queen, and i am honored to know you via wordpress!
lisa/z
Love these pictures. I think it was your sea turtle post that brought me to you?
Happy New Year Lisa!
Great collection of images, watching nature as it unfolds is an amazing experience, I’m hoping to get up to see the turtle eggs hatch that I saw being laid in November
i hope you witness that too! good luck!
Beyond magical Lisa! Such a perfect post for New! Reminded me to sign up with the turtle watch volunteers here. Have a wonderful new year 🙂
i hope that you post about your turtle watch!!!!
very exciting picture !
thanks! z
What a wonderful thing to witness. And that hatchling! How adorable (and persistent) was he? I don’t blame you for chancing behind him into the water. Next stop, NEW running shoes. 🙂
ja! new running shoes are a LONG way from playa san miguel!!!! ditto for jama!
those precious turtles are worth it!
z
OMG good luck little fellas!!! I love this thanks for the share!!!
you are so infectious with your enthusiasm! thanks! z
Oh thanks!! Those little angels! So cute! I wish I had seen it!
Lovely turtles, Lisa!
Love this post Z! These babies are truly amazing!
they really are amazing! i have so many videos and photos of the turtles, from the females coming ashore at night to the hatchery and of course of the babies making their dash to the sea!
I have to come and visit! If I can talk my husband into letting me do so, would this be OK?
but of course! if you want to visit costa rica during the turtle season, that’s from august thru november. as far as ecuador, any time is ok, though the rainy season might make it a bit unpleasant. feb and march are usually rainy, and i read yesterday that april might be the worst month this year. then the taps turn off slowly and we wean into the dry season.
in costa rica, the turtle nesting season, unfortunately, is during the rainy season! it depends on the hurricanes in the atlantic /carribean.. everyone says that they barely had a rainy season this past year.
this would be great!!!! here’s to 2013!
Fabulous photos but oh, to be there in person to see such a sight! 🙂
oh yes, it’s quite a magical treat! thanks! z
How interesting it would be to follow the little sea turtles as they make their way to the ocean. Loved your photos and story!
they’re precious to watch! thank you! z
It is such a wonder! 🙂
yes, it’s a wonder, and i never never never get tired of watching them! z
How ironic that I should find this wonderful post and this not so wonderful report at the same time. Loss of habitat is one thing. People losing their mind and taking it out on turtles is something else. Talk about slaughter of the innocents!
Still, I suppose the good news is that the percentage who’d swerve is relatively low. It’s still disturbing – greatly disturbing. It’s a clear indication of the inability of more and more people to recognize their connection with the larger world.
Thank goodness you only swerve to bring us wonderful views of your nearly unimaginably beautiful world – and your turtles!
when i read your comment on new year’s day, i wanted to go back and find where i had read a similar story. and i found several that were all basically verbatim the same, and of course no credit was given to the one who first told the story.
today i found one of my images to illustrate a post on someone else’s blog. i follow them, and i was so — dumbfounded.
sigh. thanks for listening!
z
I would love to be able to witness that amazing event someday. How awesome and uplifting and better yet I opened this on New Years Eve-how appropriate!
I wish you and your family, Dear Lisa, a very bright New Year 2013, full of joy and happiness! May 2013 brings in Peace and Love for all living beings on Earth!
In Lak’ech Ala K’in!
(http://www.alunajoy.com/2007nov.html)
Tomas
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Thank you so much for sharing! They are so adorable. I almost miss this one…
thank you for being so thoughtful! z
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Beautiful! Amazing how similar they are to the loggerheads and how incredible their radar is, isn’t it?
Yes, it’s amazing how similar they are! Your post warmed my heart, as if watching my sister on another gps point of our planet!
This is such a beautiful post. Sea turtles are very special. Many times at the beach they have their areas cornered so no one disturbs them. I love this and their cute little waddles into the water 🙂
thank you! yes, they are sweet special creatures!
your two posts today were lovely! the spaghetti and an amazing dessert! z
What an absolutely enthralling post. Who couldn’t love those little turtles. I hope every single one of them grows up. Thanks for such a brilliant post!
Thank you so much! Yes, those little turtles are inspiring! It would be nice to know that they had a greater chance of survival than one in 1,000 or one in 2,000. Z
Wow what a beautiful post. This was awesome. Thank you so much for sharing this!
thank you for your lovely comment as well! z