Endangered Leatherback Turtles

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Another Tourist attraction of Kosi Bay!

Leatherback sea turtles are listed as endangered. 

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It is estimated that the global population has declined by 40% over the past 3 generations. 

• They are the largest sea turtle species

• Can grow up to 650kg.

• Fastest moving reptile 35km/h.

• Deepest diving turtle, reaching up to 1.5km.

• Can live up to 100 years. 

• Only turtle without a hard carapace, leatherback turtles shell is leather like and not hard like other turtles.  

• They can also not withdraw their heads.

• These turtles consume large numbers of jellyfish, which helps to keep the population of these marine organisms in check.

• Sunlight shines through the skull onto its brain, helping it to navigate and know when to migrate. 

• The Giant Leatherback returns to the beach where they were born to lay eggs. 

• Research has shown that the eggs are often laid within meters of where they emerged as a hatchling year previously. 

• Female turtles’ nest at high tide on moonless nights and lay 6 - 9 clutches of eggs. 

• Each clutch contains approximately 100 - 120 eggs.

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Turtle Tour in Kosi Bay

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The turtle tour promises an awesome opportunity to witness these rare and endangered creatures coming ashore to lay eggs.

 

Once in a lifetime experience that will never be forgotten, rated as one of the top wildlife experiences

The Turtle tour is unique as the community guides do everything they can to protect and sustain the turtle growth.

 

Each year from November to January female turtles returns to the same beach where they were born.

 

The most recent science shows that Leatherbacks return after 15 years while Loggerheads take up to 36 years before laying.

 

At the base of the dunes, they dig deep nests that they fill with scores of eggs.

 

Loggerhead & Leatherback Turtle Hatchlings

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From January through to April the tiny, almost invisible trails of baby turtles scatter from holes below the dunes.

Sadly, not all of them reach the sea. 

 

Turtles are incredibly sensitive to light. Hatchlings find their way to the sea by orienting themselves to its reflective glimmer. 

 

Any artificial light at a sea turtle nesting site dramatically lowers their chances of success. That's why no torches are allowed during turtle tours! 

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Although leatherback and loggerhead turtles usually lay around 100 eggs in a nest, and dig on average five nests in a season, it’s estimated that scarcely one in a thousand hatchlings make it to maturity, shocking!

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• From the moment a sea turtle egg hits the damp sand of a nest, it’s under threat. Once the female turtle has dragged herself laboriously back to the ocean, the eggs are left entirely unprotected. Dogs and jackals, ants and ghost crabs, snakes, gulls, rats, cats and mongooses all adore a tasty turtle egg.

• Then, once the turtle hatches, it has to push its way up through the sand and hope for a clear passage to the sea. This, however, is highly unlikely. While adult leatherbacks and loggerheads weigh hundreds of pounds and are virtually immune to natural predators, their hatchlings are just a couple of inches long and weigh less than two ounces.

• When the sun sets, legions of stalk-eyed ghost crabs scuttle up and down the beach, ready to grab turtle hatchlings as they try to reach the sea. 

• Thousands of stalk-eyed ghost crabs patrol the dunes, waiting to drag the tiny turtles away. To humans, stalk-eyed ghost crabs seem harmless, but it’s estimated that they make off with more than 10 per cent of newly hatched turtles.

• If a hatchling doesn’t reach water before daylight, it will die of dehydration or be scooped up by gulls and raptors. Even if a baby turtle successfully reaches the ocean, there’s no respite. Beyond the beach, endless dangers await: marlin, barracuda, tiger sharks – predators too numerous to name. Then there are the human perils of plastic, pollution, poaching, fishing lines, nets and boats. By the time a hatchling reaches the ocean it has one in a thousand chance of reaching adulthood. 

• What a privilege to be able to witness this phenomenal fight for survival. 

 

The Leatherback turtles of iSimangaliso are the most southern breeding population in the world, and with fewer than 100 laying females coming ashore each year, they are rarer than black rhino.