THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, September 7, 1995 TAG: 9509070445
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY SCOTT HARPER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: Medium: 86 lines
Under a white summer moon, 11-year-old Rachael Ruhlin stood barefoot in the cool sand at Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge Tuesday night and released a newborn sea turtle into the world.
The baby loggerhead turtle, barely a day old but already protected by the federal government as a threatened species, stumbled down the sloped beach for several perilous minutes before the ocean finally swallowed its tiny shadow.
Ruhlin, a self-described ``turtle freak'' who said she likes the laid-back marine mammals because ``they're very nice,'' clapped with excitement at the sight and hoped she might one day see her turtle again.
``He'll be back,'' she said confidently. ``You know, they come back to where they were born. So maybe we can meet.''
Another summer, another mating season for loggerhead turtles in the remote dunes of Virginia Beach. The Back Bay refuge is the northernmost point on the Atlantic Coast where loggerheads consistently return to give birth, although a few stray nests can be found on the Eastern Shore.
As they do each August and September, refuge biologists are counting nests (eight this year), capturing turtle eggs (nearly 1,000 so far) and keeping the eggs in protected hatcheries away from predators such as foxes, raccoons and gulls.
But this season, the refuge is allowing a limited number of people, mostly children, to start the newborns on their fateful crawl to the surf. Education, awareness and public interaction are the motives for this new openess.
The turtle trek itself is crucial because, as refuge biologist John B. Gallegos explained, it imprints a certain smell, or taste or touch in sea turtles that lures them home once they reach sexual maturity, usually in 10 to 15 years.
Ruhlin, her five sisters and her mother were among a small group who signed up earlier this summer for the event. The Norfolk family was called to the refuge late Tuesday afternoon, just hours after the turtles were born, to lend a hand to one of nature's most mysterious journeys.
``It's pretty neat,'' said Sarah Ruhlin, 13. ``You hear about sea turtles in school and stuff, but being able to release them right here gives you a new perspective on them. You see how sensitive they are. You want to help them.''
In all, 159 newborns were released Tuesday night. The refuge still has four nests with eggs that have not hatched; all will probably be dispatched by the end of the month.
Biologist Florence James estimates that one in 300 loggerhead babies will survive to maturity, the rest succumbing to predators on land and at sea. She noted, however, that if the refuge did not protect turtle eggs by digging them from the beach and placing them in wire-mesh cages, the survival rate would be doubly worse.
Loggerheads, which can grow to 600 pounds at maturity, are one of five sea turtles on the Atlantic coast that are protected under the Endangered Species Act.
Recognized by its heart-shaped shell and reddish-brown color, loggerheads nest mostly in Florida, South Carolina and Georgia. But a few call Virginia home.
They are shy creatures and like to nest on the remote beaches of the refuge or on the uninhabited barrier islands on the Eastern Shore.
The number of nests in Virginia Beach has remained about the same the past decade, usually about five or six, although biologists note a slight downturn the past several years. They blame shoreline development, pollution and too much human interaction. ILLUSTRATION: Color photo
MARTIN SMITH-RODDEN/Staff
In all, 159 newly born loggerhead turtles were released Tuesday
night at Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge. The refuge still has
four nests with eggs that have not hatched; all will probably be
dispatched by the end of the month.
by CNB