The Ocean Foundation

Sandy Point NWR Is Critical Nesting Habitat for Three Federally Protected Sea Turtle Species, the Leatherback, Green and Hawksbill Sea Turtle the Leatherback Recovery Program Began on Sandy Point With Monitoring and Tagging Efforts in 1977, Leading to the Development of the Longest Continously Operated Leatherback Research and Recovery Program This Long Term Recovery Effort and Resulting Data, and Research Are Critical for Supporting the Leatherback Sea Turtle Population Recovery by Providing Information on Life History Traits Such as Survival, Recruitment, Hatch Success, Age to Maturity and Longevity Through This Project, the Ocean Foundation in Collaboration With Sandy Point NWR Staff, Will Increase Efforts for Recording Hawksbill Sea Turtle Nests and Document Emergences With the Goal of Establishing Sandy Point NWR as an Important Index Nesting Beach for This Species Extended Day Patrols, Assessing Hatch Succes, Tracking Productivity Are Part of the Activities That Will Be Conducted for This Species, in Addition to Recording Biometric Data to Compile Nesting History and Collecting Genetic Samples to Determine If Green and Hawksbills Sea Turtles in the Caribbean Are Unique Populations the Contiueation of Endangered Sea Turtle Management, Monitoring, and Research on the Refuge Is Essential to Both the Mission of the Refuge and Recovery of Sea Turtle Populations World Wide