Some beach enthusiasts in Florida are feeling extra thankful for the chance to witness a discovery made on the state’s northern coastline.
Despite batterings by the angry surf of two major hurricanes and inundations from soaking rains, researchers found that a late-in-season nest of green sea turtle eggs on Ponte Vedra Beach had—against the odds—survived.
And beachgoers attending a scientific evaluation of the nest on Nov. 21 were uplifted by a rare treat—the opportunity to see tiny turtles, apparently trapped at the bottom of the nest, released to begin their journey to the Sargasso Sea.
Young turtles who make it to that patch of ocean—named for the sargassum seaweed that accumulates there—find food and shelter on mats of vegetation, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Sea turtles reach maturity and begin to reproduce when they’re 25–35 years old….