They seemed to huddle over the houses like a shabbily dressed football team calling a play. Many of the houses, especially those away from the beach, were shrouded by huge live oak trees, all decked out in gray Spanish moss. We also learned there were an abundance of ranch houses on the island, a style attractive to both of us.Īs we started to drive around, a quality of St.

A house with marsh views, especially at sunset, brings a hefty price, too. Simons, there is another large attraction - the marsh. As you might imagine, the price per square foot of housing in most beach communities is directly proportional to the ease of footing it to the beach.īut on St. Our real estate agent, Dean Ozanne of Coldwell Banker Platinum Partners, quickly oriented us to the options available in our price range, and where we could find them. We would have to agree on a house we could afford before we moved on to other considerations. We both knew, whether here or Sanibel, housing would be key to our decision-making. Simons Island, the largest of Georgia's Golden Isles that also include Sea Island, Jekyll Island and the privately owned Little St. If they don’t make it to the ocean quickly, many hatchlings will die of dehydration in the sun or be caught by predators like birds or crabs.What would our house be like? Would we be able to walk or bike to the beach? Where would we take the kids and grandkids when they visited? What would be the outlets for our own interests? How were the medical facilities? Where would we go to dinner? Where would we (rather, one of us) shop?Īnd then the much larger point: How would we decide?Īs someone who raises dithering to an art form, this one was a big one for me. Unfortunately, bright lights coming from Tybee can confuse them causing them to become disoriented and head the wrong way. By instinct, hatchlings head toward the brightest horizon, which is normally the horizon over the sea. Artificial lights can discourage females from nesting and they can mean death for baby sea turtles. Tybee Island urges people to turn off or shield light coming from structures visible from the beach after 10pm from May1st to October 31st. “Lights Out on Tybee” is a program that has been put into effect to protect nesting Loggerhead Sea Turtles. If you are staying on Tybee during the nesting season, please do your part in keeping these turtles safe. Nesting data is reported to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources (Georgia DNR). Five days after the hatch, the nests are excavated and egg shells are counted to determine the number of eggs laid, and of those lain, how many actually hatched. When a nest hatches, the hatchling number is estimated by the number of tracks from the nest to the ocean. As a nest’s hatching time approaches, cooperators are assigned to “nest sit” during the night until that nest has hatched. The average length of incubation is 60 days and so observation of the nests becomes a part of the daily dawn patrol. When a viable nest is confirmed, it is roped off and posted. When a crawl is located the Sea Turtle Project Coordinator verifies the presence of a nest by locating the eggs in the nest cavity. Early in the season these volunteers are especially looking for “sea turtle crawls.” When a sea turtle nests, they leave tracks on the beach as they search for a good spot. The patrol consists of walking the entire three miles of Tybee’s beaches and looking for evidence of sea turtle activity. During the nesting season, May 1 to October 31, volunteer cooperators conduct daily Dawn Patrols (6 a.m.) along the beach. The Tybee Sea Turtle Project (a conservation program of the Tybee Marine Science Center) has made great strides in ensuring hatchlings on Tybee have the best chances for survival. We have made it our mission on Tybee Island, Georgia to do our part in protecting these animals and provide a safe environment for their nesting grounds. waters their population continues to decline.

Even though they are the most abundant of all the marine turtle species in U.S. Loggerhead turtles love coastal habitats and Tybee Island has become a favorite nesting spot for some of these incredible creatures.

Seaturtle rescue center st simons