No Alagadi hatchlings.

Once again, we have had no nests hatch during the night. This means no public excavation or hatchling release tonight. This inactivity suggests that the remaining nests we have left are unfortunately on their way to failing, which is usually the case with a females last clutch.

Instead, the volunteers will be working hard to remove the cages from the beach. We are starting with Bay 3 of Alagadi 1 today and will have all the cages removed by the end of the season. Alagadi will most definitely look different without 202 white dome cages scattered across it.

Hope you've enjoyed this season as much as the project has. We will hopefully post some season summaries of Alagadi, North and West beaches so that you know what's happened.

~JB

No turtle activities today.

Hello!

Due to the little number of nests we have left, plus the fact that we had no nests hatch last night, there is no public excavation or hatchling release tonight.

The project is still open until early October, so please come visit us to find out more information about the turtles and this season.

I also apologise for not posting the second article I promised yesterday. It turned out to be a busy day of excavations, data and beach cleaning.

Hope everyone is well.

~JB

Final countdown!

Hello!

We are down to our last 6 nests on Alagadi; one on Alagadi 1 and 5 on Alagadi 2. Today's public excavation is located on Alagadi 1, just to the left of the Beach bar. It's one of our final logger nests and perhaps the last of our public events,as unfortunately it seems the rest of our nests are on the way to failing.

Meet at the Goatshed at 5.30 to walk down, or wait on the boardwalk of the Beach bar and a volunteer will collect you. We will also be taking provisional bookings for the hatchling release tonight as we have only had 10 hatchlings emerge from this particular nest. Call us on 05338798533 to book a place.

The volunteers will also be doing another beach clean today and later on today, we will be posting about the litter and consequences of it on the beach environment, volunteers and turtles.

Bye!
~JB

Good morning!

I'm happy to inform you that today we do have a public excavation! Today's one is located on Alagadi 2 and therefore we will be driving a convoy from the Goatshed at 5.30.

We currently have no hatchlings from our morning excavation to release tonight. However the nest due to be excavated later this afternoon has ony had 15 hathclings emerge from it and therefore should bless us with many hatchlings to dig up. If that is the case we shall be taking bookings for the night release after the excavation.

Today at the Goatshed, we've got a big clean day to keep the germs and bugs at bay!

Tune in tomorrow for more updates!

~JB

A quiet day for the Turtle Project.

Hello all.

I'd like to inform you that today we will not be having a public excavation. Feel free to give us a call or visit Alagadi beach to see our nests and enjoy the sunshine.

'til tomorrow bloggers.

~JB

Another bites the dust.

Hi there!

Last night we had 1 more nest hatch. It was another or our Green clutches and is located on Alagadi 2. We shall be leading a convoy from the Goatshed at 5.30 or alternatively you can meet us in the car park/on the beach around 17.45/18.00.

As we currently have no hatchlings to release and last nights nest had over 50 babies emerge from it, it is unlikely we will be having a hatchling release tonight. However please feel free to to give us a call on 00905338798533 to find out more information.

Hope to see you at the excavation later.

~JB

No turtles, no work!

Hello!

Due to nothing hatching last night there is no public excavation or hatching release tonight.

We only have 13 nests left to hatch so these events are drawing to an end. However we shall keep you updated on the activity we have here at Alagadi.

~JB

The season is winding down but excavations are still happening!

Hello bloggers.

Just a quick post today. We've got a public excavation today, located on Bay 2 of Alagadi 1. We had 3 nests hatch last night and today we will be excavating a Loggerhead nest for you. We'll be leaving the Goatshed at 5.30 and starting the excavation around 6.00.

We currently only have 7 hatchlings to release; we are taking bookings as well as provisional bookings, with the hope that we will rescue more hatchlings from the public excavation.

Hope to see there!

~JB

Excavation for the Cyprus nation.

Hello bloggers!

Only one of our nests hatched last night so that's what we will be excavating today at 5.30! It's locate on Bay 3 of Alagadi 1, just to the right of Turtle Paradise, Alagadi's delightful beach bar.

Turtle season is quickly drawing to an end. Out of our 202 nests on Alagadi, we only have 17 left to hatch and excavate. If you're contemplating coming to an excavation come sooner rather than later before we run out of nests.

We are taking provisional bookings for tonight's hatchling release as we have none to release at present. Call 05338798533 to book your place but please be aware you'll have to call again at 7pm to confirm that we have collected hatchlings from the public excavation.

Within the last few weeks of this season, we shall posts about the activity and events that have passed. including number of nests, activity on the North and West coasts as well as insights into additional work that the volunteers of Turtle Project get up to.

'til tomorrow!

-JB

To all the turtle huggers out there!

Good morning fellow turtle lovers.

Exciting news today down in Alagadi. We are not only having an excavation at 17.30 but it is a special tie dye excavation. Tie dye is not compulsory but rather than our usual red uniforms please look out for us wearing some lovely tops that throw the senses back to the 60s. As for the excavation itself it will be taking place on Alagadi 2; we will be running a convoy there at just after 17.30.

For any more information please call our hatchling hotline on 05338798533. To book on to our release at 20.30 you need to ring 12.00 midday onwards. We can book up quickly so don't hang about!

Look forward to seeing you all later!

Samuel x

Excavation this evening!! (12/09/2011)

Afternoon all!

Sorry for the delay in the update of the blog, internet connection issues meant a delay in the update this morning. I am happy to say though that we have got an excavation on this evening at the usual time of 5:30pm meet at the GS, where we will take you down from there. Also as a total of 3 nests hatched last night, and morning walkers excavated two this morning, we know that we will be having a release on. As yet we are still not full booked, so if you would like to book on for one of our releases, please call us on 05338798533, or alternatively book at the GS if you make it to our excavation. I will be advertising the remaining places if we still have some during the excavation, so please don't wait until it is too late.

We only have a remaining 26 nests still to hatch for this year, so please don't miss out on coming down and seeing the hatchlings being excavated from the nests and the opportunity to hold and release them during the night. Also our base is still open for any information you may need, so please feel free to come for a chat and a browse at the merchandise we sell.

Hope to see some of you lovely people tonight,
Collsy xxx

Don't miss out! (11/09/2011)

Good morning turtle followers,

Another day means that we do have another excavation on this evening, at the usual time (yes you guessed it) of 5:30pm meet at the GS where we will all go down to the nest from there. For those of you that either know the beach, or who will already be down on the beach, we will be excavating a nest that is on the furthest bay from the beach bar (bay 3). If you are confident as to where this site is, you are more than welcome to meet us down on the beach.

Although we still have around 30 nests left for excavation, they are starting to slow down hatching, so don't miss out and come down to grab a chance of seeing these magnificent creatures before its to late.

We only had the one nest hatch last night, so as yet we do not have any hatchlings for the release. However, same plan as yesterday, if you book in for a space and then check with us around 6:30ish we will be able to tell you whether or not we are having a release. Alternatively you can meet us down at the GS for 8:30, but be prepared to be turned away if there are no hatchlings.

Hope to see you there,
Collsyxxx

An excavation for the nation! (10/09/2011)

Good morning one and all,

It's another beautiful sparkling day here at Alagadi, and to make the day seem even brighter, I am glad to say that we do have a public excavation on this evening. In a slight change to the usual settings for our excavations, today the nest is situated on the beach just over the headland past the beach bar (for those of you that know, Iki). Therefore to make things easier, we will be doing a convoy round to the beach, and we would greatly appreciate it if those with vehicles could offer potential visitors that do not have, a lift to the sight.

As only the one nest hatched last night, we have currently no hatchlings. Therefore we will still be provisionally booking people on for a release, but they will need to maybe give us a call after the excavation this evening to check that we got any hatchlings, or if they turn up be prepared to be set away. In the event of some hatchlings being collected but maybe not enough for everyone to hold, each group will be issued with a hatchling, and children will get priority over holding them.

So summary, there is an excavation on at the usual time of 5:30pm, where we will convoy everyone round, and we will be booking on for a release but you will need to check with us before making your way to us this evening. The number to call is: 05338798533

See you all soon,
Collsyxxx

Back to normal! (09/09/2011)

Good morning trusty followers!

I am happy to say that we will be having and excavation on this evening. As to yet we are unsure whether there is going to be a hatchling release, as our morning workers are still working hard on the beaches. So give us a call at 12 noon where we will know whether or not we have any hatchlings for you this evening.

We have sadley noticed that a lot of the visitors visiting the project are starting to go home with the beginning of schools and back into the real world, so the Hatchling Hotline on: 05338798533 is generally quieter. This means for all you lovely people still with us who wish to book on for our releases can call the hotline with relative ease. We will be continuing our work up until the end of September, which is scarily come round the corner, so don't miss out on the opportunity to see some live hatchling excavations and releases for this year.

We hope to see meany of you tonight at our excavation, you know the time and place by now (Goatshed for 5:20pm)from which we will take you down to the nest from there. Please feel free to give us a call at 12 noon to see whether you can book on for the release.

See you'll soon
Collsy xxx

No Excavation on this evening! (08/09/2011)

Good morning turtle followers,

I am afraid to say that we do not have any public activities happening this evening. Last night was a very quiet night for our night workers, but a nice easy morning for our day hatchers, with not a single nest hatching.

Today we lose another key member of our team, Hannah, so I would like to take this opportunity to thank her for all her hard work,you are absolutely fabulous darling!I am sure that I can say on behalf of everyone that you will be greatly missed. We hope that you have a safe journey home and don't forget us!!! Miss you already!..Hello would you like some Hellim?!

Anywho... we hope that we will be back to normal tomorrow night, but keep an eye on the blog for more details.

Until then trusty followers,
Collsyxxx

A rare treat: Loggerhead excavation

Hello bloggers.

I am happy once again to inform you that we do have a public excavation and hatchling release today. Daywork blessed us with many hatchlings, so those lucky people who get onto the release are in for a treat.

Today's public excavation is a loggerhead nest; a rare sight this season due to small numbers of nesting loggerhead females. The excavation will be located on Alagadi 1, Bay 2. A short walk from the Goatshed or for those who want to meet us on the beach, it is to the left of the Beach Bar.

Meet us at the Goatshed at 5.30 as per usual or look for volunteers in red t-shirts on the beach. Come with lots of questions and hopefully you'll get to see small little loggerhead hatchlings.

'til tomorrow!

~JB

Rafts Against Rubbish Rules and Regulations English

Rafts Against Rubbish – Information and Rules
General Information
The organisers wish to emphasise that the event is a ‘charity fun race’ in aid of SPOT (The Society for the Protection of Turtles) for the enjoyment of competitors and spectators alike. All competitors are asked to enter this fun carnival event and design their raft and crew accordingly. Appropriate names for rafts should be used.
• Each raft entered needs to pay a registration fee of 40tl.
• All rafts to be off-loaded at the West end of Guzelyali beach (past the Beach bars & right turn off main road).
• Raft Captains to check in at ‘Control Desk’ at start point by 13.00 latest.
• Registration will commence at 10.00 and finish at 13.00 followed by inspection.
• With registration and safety check completed, all rafts will then be judged.
• The race will commence 14.30 from West of the beach area. The finish line will be the Jetty between the beach bars.
• The Raft Race committee may decide to run more than 1 race if entrant numbers are high. Start of the race may be brought forward depending on numbers and weather conditions. Raft numbers will be limited.
• Prize presentations will take place on Guzelyali Beach at approximately 18.00.
General Rules (The rules of the Raft Race for 2011 are set out below, please read carefully)
1. The crew will consist of four persons (all competent swimmers) with two persons remaining on board at all times.
2. All four persons must be in touch with the raft when crossing the finish line.
3. Crew members must not assist themselves or receive assistance from the shore or any other vessel, e.g. no motor assistance, no towing.
4. Minimum age of the Captain is 21 years at date of event. The Captain takes full responsibility for the crew.
5. At the time of registration, the Captain is required to sign a declaration absolving the organisers from all responsibility
in all matters relating to the Raft Race (below). The committee’s decision is final.
Safety Rules
1. Construction of raft and paddles must be safe, no protruding nails, screws or sharp edges, etc. The crafts will be inspected by the Judges. Any raft that, because of its construction, is considered a danger to other competitors must be amended prior to transfer to beach or withdrawn.
2. Competitors must follow the instructions of the safety officials on the beach, in the sea canoes and safety boats.
3. All officials concerned with your safety will wear a ‘Red Turtle Project T-Shirt’. Safety officials are permitted to withdraw from the race any crew member who they consider to be unfit to participate or to continue.
4. Safety crafts will be provided, however, it is the responsibility of each captain to ensure the safety of their crew, to satisfy themselves that all crew members are proficient swimmers. Captains will be required to sign the declaration (at the bottom of this sheet) to that effect, and hand in to the organisers before the start of the race.
5. No ‘physical’ interference between rafts is permitted and offending crews may be disqualified.
6. Teams will be responsible to remove all rafts and debris from the water and surrounding areas. Rubbish skips will be available for removal of all rafts at the end of the race.
Raft Construction Rules
1. Rafts should be strongly constructed and capable of withstanding sea conditions.
2. A raft must be capable of being carried by the crew of the raft in/out of the water.
3. No rowlocks or substitutes will be accepted. Any form of rowing will not be permitted.
5. No type of engine propulsion allowed, however, rafts can be paddled, pushed, sailed, swim-towed, or driven by human mechanical power. Paddles are allowed.
6. Rafts must not be modified from normal marine craft or other water-borne craft.

Rafts Against Rubbish Rules and Regs Turkce

Rafts Against Rubbish – Bilgiler ve Kurallar

Genel Bilgi
Bu organizasyon Kuzey Kıbrıs Kaplumbağaları Koruma Cemiyeti için bağış toplamak ve katılımcıların eğlenmesi için düzenlenmiştir. İlgilenenler bu eğlenceli yarışmaya ekip olarak tasarladıkları sal ile katılmaya davetlidirler. Tasarlanan sala uygun bir isim verilmelidir.
• Her katılan sal ve ekibi için katılım ücreti 40 TL’dir.
• Katılacak olan ekipler sallarını Güzelyalı kumsalındaki BEACH BARları geçtikten sonraki alana indirecek.
• Sal ve ekip kaptanları en geç saat 13:00’da plajdaki “kontrol masası”na kayıt yaptırmalıdır.
• Kayıt saat 10:00’da başlayıp 13:00’da bitecektir.
• Kayıt ve salların güvenlik açısından kontrolu yapıldıktan sonra sallar jüri önüne çıkacak.
• Yarışma saat 14:30’da plajın batı ucundan başlayacak. Bitiş çizgisi iki bar arasındaki rıhtım hizası olacak.
• Eğer katılımcı sayısı çok fazla ise yarışma komitesi birden fazla yarışma yaptırabilir. Hava durumuna ve katılımcı sayısına göre komite başlama vaktini değiştirebilir. Katılım sayısı sınırlandırılacaktır.
• Ödüller saat 18:00 sıralarında Güzelyalı Plajında verilecektir.
Genel Kurallar (2011 Sal Yarışı kuralları aşağıda belirtilmiştir, dikkatle okuyunuz)
1. Sal mürettebatı 4 kişiden (iyi yüzücü) oluşur. Mürettebattan en az ikisi sürekli olarak salın üzerinde olmalıdır.
2. Bitiş çizgisini geçerken 4 kişi de sal ile temas halinde olmalıdır.
3. Mürettebat herhangi bir başka araç, motor, çekici gibi kıyıdan veya dıştan bir yardım almamalıdır.
4. Mürettebat kaptanı yarışma gününde en az 21 yaşında olmalıdır. Kaptan mürettebatın tüm sorumluluğunu üstlenir.
5. Yarışma günündeki kayıt sırasında Kaptan tarafından imzalanacak olan anlaşma ile yarışmayı organize edenler üzerindeki sorumluluğu kaldırır.
6. Yarışma ile ilgili durumlarda komitenin vereceği karar son karardır.

Güvenlik Kuralları
1.Sal ve kürekler güvenli olmalıdır. Ucu açıkta kalmış çivi, vida, keskin kenarlı yerler bulunmamalıdır. Sallar komite tarafından kontrol edilecek. Yapısından dolayı diğer yarışmacılar için tehlikeli olabilecek sallar plaja indirilmeden düzeltilmeli veya yarıştan çekilmelidir.
2. Yarışmacılar plajdaki, kanolardaki ve botlardaki güvenlik görevlilerinin yönergelerini dinlemek zorundadır.
3. Güvenlik görevlileri “Kırmızı Kaplumbağa Proje Tişörtü” giyecek. Güvenlik görevlileri yarışmaya katılmaya uygun görmedikleri herhangi bir kişiyi yarıştan men etme yetkisine sahiptir.
4. Güvenlik için araçlar bulunacak olsa da, her kaptan kendi mürettebatının güvenliğinden sorumludur. Kaptanlar iyi yüzücü olduklarına ve mürettebattan sorumlu olduklarına dair anlaşma imzalaycak.
5. İki sal arasında herhangi bir fiziksel engelleme yapılması yasaktır. Engelleme yapan takımlar diskalifiye edilecektir.
6. Yarışma sonunda tüm takımlar bütün sal ve sal malzemelerini sudan ve etraftan toplamakla sorumludurlar. Atıkları almak üzere çöp bidonları bulunacaktır.
Sal Yapım Kuralları
1. Sallar denize ve dalgalara dayanabilecek güçte yapılmalıdır.
2. Sallar mürettebatı tarafından denize taşınabilecek şekilde yapılmalıdır.
3. Sal üzerine küreklerin monte edilmesi yasaktır.
4. Herhangi bir motor takılması yasaktır. Kürek veya yelken kullanılabilir, yittirilebilir, yüzerek çekilebilir, mekanik insan gücü ile herhangi bir şekilde yüzdürülebilir.
5. Sallar herhangi bir yüzen araçtan bozma yapılamaz.

3 hatched nests = 1 Public excavation + Hatchling release!

Hi bloggers.

This morning has been good to us dayworkers; we had three nests hatch last night, all very successful. We excavated a couple during the morning and stumbled upon a loggerhead nest that had just begun to hatch at 9.30! I'm glad to say we arrived just in time to save these hatchlings from the heat of the sun.

Today's public excavation is located on Bay3 at Alagadi and will take place at the normal time of 5.30. We have 50 hatchlings for our release tonight, so give us a call on 00905338798533 from midday to book onto that (25 spaces available).

Hope the day is good to you all; hope to see you at one of our events!

~JB

Hey bloggers.

I apologise for the lateness of today's update but our computers are acting a bit slow nowadays. We're in the last part of this year's turtle season, with only around 50 nests left to hatch on Alagadi Beach. Our west base, in Akdeniz, is in a similar situation with around 60 nests left to hatch.

I'm happy to say that today we do have a public excavation! 2 nests hatched last night and today's excavation location is on Bay 3 of Alagadi. Either meet us at the Goatshed at 5.30 or wait at Alagadi Beach Bar and look out for volunteers in red t-shirts.

We are taking bookings for a hatchling release but today's may possibly be cancelled due to lack of hatchlings to release. We will know for certain after our excavation today.

If you'd like more information about today's events of the project please drop by the Goatshed or give us a call on 00905338798533 - we'd be happy to answer your questions.

~JB

Public excavation and mini-release tonight

Dear turtle followers,

We have a public excavation on tonight at 5.30, meet at Goatshed, or if you prefer to meet us on the beach it will be on Alagadi 2, the far beach over the headland from the Beach Bar.

We only have a few hatchlings so far today so will take provisional bookings in case more come out of the public excavation.

Thanks and see you later

Excavations on this evening (02/09/2011)

Good morning turtle followers,

Today we are having two excavations both at the same time but one will be held in Turkish, while the other in English. This is to encourage the locals to come to this special event, and see a vital part of the islands heritage. Both will still the usual time of 5:30pm meet at thee Goatshed, where we will split everyone up into the correct excavation groups.

I am afraid that we do not have a public release on this evening, as we have had no excavations on this mornings work, so we have no hatchlings in order to release. But please don't worry we will still have plenty within the remaining few weeks of the project- we will still be here for another 4 weeks.

We hope to see a big turn out tonight!
See you there,
Collsy xxx

Excavation for the nation! (01/09/2011)

Good afternoon turtle bloggers,

I am sorry that it has been a few days since our last update, a few slow internet mornings means that it has been hard to connect to you lovely people. I am happy to say that this afternoon that we are having a public excavation on at the usual time of 5:30pm meet at GS.

We are fully booked for our hatchling release tonight, but don't worry there is still plenty of opportunities to book on. Just a little reminder that we can not take any pre-bookings or bookings before 12pm. We also would like to remind people that we are only taking 15 booking spaces in person, and the other 10 spaces will be allocated to those that call the hatchling hotline.

We are well into the hatching season now, but still have plenty of excavations in the remaining month.

Its been a sad day for us at GS today with a farewell to both Nat and Kirsty, star volunteers who will be sourly missed by everyone on the project. Whose going to make my cups of tea now, and promise to do some sand samples hay?!? - sad times! I would like to thank them for their brilliant efforts this season, and they presence will be greatly missed. Safe journey home girls!

Hope to see you round GS!
Collsyxxx

Excavation and Release Today!!

Good Morning Blog Followers,

Normal service resumes today and there will be a public excavation and a release. For a place on the release please call the goatshed number from 12pm, places are limited and it will fill up very quickly so for those who miss out today please keep checking the blog and try again.

The excavation however is open to all, it is on bay 3 today very close to the beach bar. You can either drive to the beach bar and watch out for the volunteers in red t-shirts or meet us at the goatshed at 5.20pm.

We hope to see you all today and we are sure you will all have a shell of a time here at the Marine Turtle Project in Alagadi!!!

Sorry for yesterday, no excavation or release today!

Dear followers,

We'd like to apologise for the excavation yesterday as it didn't go according to plan. We had a large group from Turkcell, who kindly donate money towards our petrol bill each year, who came to the excavation. They arrived after the information speech was given by our volunteers, so were given another talk in English and Turkish by Project Leader Robin and Turkish speaking volunteer Errol. By this time, however, the original group had been waiting for some time in the heat on the beach for the second group to arrive. We are sorry to those of you who did not have an enjoyable excavation experience because of this.

We have another large group coming today, this time from the US Emabassy, and we've decided to make this a private event to avoid a repeat of yesterday with mis-timings. It is very unusual for us to take group bookings and we have only made these two special exceptions so far this season. Therefore there is no public excavation or hatchling release on tonight, but hopefully we'll be back on again as usual tomorrow.

Thanks and see you soon

Kim
MTCP Project Leader

Good morning all,
We had another busy night on the beach last night with 4 nests hatching on A1 and one on A2. One of those will be open for you guys to come along to, just meet us at the Goatshed at 5.30 and we'll take you down. Unfortunately we wont be holding a public release today or tomorrow, so if your looking to come down for that then give us a call on Sunday.
All the best and have a wonderful day!
Amy xx

Hi everyone,

Just a quick update to say that its been a busy night on Alagadi with lots of nests hatching. For a chance to see the hatchlings for yourself come along to our public excavation today. No need to book, just turn up at the turtle project in Alagadi village at 5:30. Anyone who would like to book onto a night time release should call the hotline (00905338798533) after 12:00 for a place.
Hope to see you all there!

Kirsty xx

Gooooood morning everyone,

You'll be pleased to know that last night was yet another successful night on Alagadi so we will be holding a public excavation at the usual time of 5.30, meet at Goatshed. We may also be holding a public release so please do call us just after 12 if you want to get on.

May I just remind people that no flash photography can be used during the excavation as the intensity of the light can damage the sight of the newly hatched hatchlings. Also that although we do not charge for these life time experiences, we do ask if you could be so kind enough to leave a donation, as we get no external funding, and we are a charity based organisation. Without your generous donations, our project would not be able to continue to run every year. So thank you so far for all you donations, but please continue to give to allow us to give you these magnificent opportunities to see this stunning creatures still within their natural environment.

Our information centre is open every day from 9am so please feel free to come down and visit us and find out some more interesting turtle information.

Amy x

Excavation this evening (23/08/2011)

Good morning bloggers,

Sorry it has been a while since our last update, it’s just been one of those manic weeks, with many hatchlings, excavations and turtle fun in the sun. I am happy to announce that we do have an excavation on this evening, and we will be taking people down at the usual time of 5:30pm at the HQ. Our release is fully booked up for tonight but please try again tomorrow for your chance to book yourself a space.

May I just remind people that no flash photography can be used during the excavation as the intensity of the light can damage the sight of the newly hatched hatchlings. Also that although we do not charge for these life time experiences, we do ask if you could be so kind enough to leave a donation, as we get no external funding, and we are a charity based organisation. Without your generous donations, our project would not be able to continue to run every year. So thank you so far for all you donations, but please continue to give to allow us to give you these magnificent opportunities to see this stunning creatures still within their natural environment.

Our information centre is open every day from 9am so please feel free to come down and visit us and find out some more interesting turtle information.

We hope to see you there
Collsy xxx

Excavation tonight (19/08/2011)

Good morning turtle followers,

After a sad farewell to a key member of our team this morning (Rhi), who will be greatly missed among the volunteers, I am happy to say that we have another excavation on this evening. You know the drill by now... meet for 5:30pm at the GS and we will take you down to the nest from there.

May I remind people that we do not take any bookings for the release until the hatchling hotline opens at 12pm, as until then we are uncertain as to whether we have any hatchlings until this time.

We hope to have another large turn out again this evening.
Hope to see you there,
Collsy xxx

Hi Guys!
Apologies for the late post but we have had a manic day on Alagadi already,

I am happy to say that we do have an excavation on this evening, so feel free to meet us at the goatshed at 17:30 as usual and we will take you down to the nest from there.

Our shop will be open before and after the excavation for and turtle goodies and a bucket for donations will be passed round during the end of the excavation,any money would be greatly appreciated as we are a charity and donations are crucial to keep us going.

Hopefully we will see you later,

Laura x

Excavation for the nation (18/08/2011)

Goooooood morning turtle bloggers,

I am happy to say that we do have an excavation on this evening, which is located on our first beach, 3rd bay (bay on the right hand side of the beach bar). As usual if people can meet at the GS for 5:30pm, we can take you down to the nest from there. Alternatively those of you already thinking of heading down to the beach, if you keep your eyes peeled for red t-shirts followed by a (fingers crossed) large crowd, you are more than welcome to join them.

Our shop will be open before and after the excavation for and turtle related souvenirs or alternatively, a bucket for donations will be passed round during the end of the excavation, and any money would be greatly appreciate. Without your generous donations the project would not be running today. This project is a charity based organisation, and without your generous donations and the fee that each volunteer pays, we could not be able to run this project, so please give generously to keep this good work going on the conservation of these magnificent creatures.

We hope that many of you can attended this evening,

See you there
Collsy xxx

Good morning turtle followers,

I am happy to say that we do have an excavation on this evening, and everyone is welcome to come along. The nest will be on our second beach (Iki), so a car is recommended. As usual we meet at 5:30pm at the Goatshed and then will take a convoy of cars round from there.

May I remind people that no flash photography can be used during the excavation, and donations are greatly appreciated. Also if you are interested in coming to one of our releases, then the hatchling hotline will be open from 12pm. Please do not call before this time, as we will be unable to pre book anybody in, but do call before if you are interested in the public excavation.

Laura

Excavation on Iki (16/082011)

Good morning turtle followers,

I am happy to say that we do have an excavation on this evening, and everyone is welcome to come view it. The nest that we will be excavating is on our second beach (Iki), so a car is going to be needed to transport people to the site. As usual we meet at 5:30pm at the Goatshed and then will take a convoy of cars round from there.

The nest this evening is a Green nest, and is the second clutch of her season. May I remind people that no flash photography can be used during the excavation, and donations are greatly appreciated. Also if you are interested in coming to one of our releases, then the hatchling hotline will be open from 12pm. Please do not call before this time, as we will be unable to pre book anybody in, but do call before if you are interested in the public excavation.

Hope to see many people there tonight,
Collsy xxx

Excavation tonight (14/08/2011)

Good morning one and all,

I am happy to say that we have another excavation on this evening at the usual time of 5:30 meet at the GS. The nest this evening is a logger nest, and is her 2nd clutch of the season. It is situated on our 3rd bay, so if you are already down on the beach, look out for red t-shirts around the meet time and join them at the site.

Our information centre is open from 9:00am onwards, so please feel free to come and visit us. We have a wide range of merchandise on sale and all volunteers are here to answer any questions about the work that we do here.

May I remind people that we are unable to take any bookings for hatchling releases before 12pm. So please feel free to give us a call about whether there is an excavation on this evening, but we will not be able to book you in for a release if there is one until 12pm.

Hope to see you later
Collsy xxx

Excavation on this evening (13/08/2011)

Good afternoon turtle followers,

Sorry for the late blog update we had a very busy morning, followed by a trip up the north coast to do the north beaches. We do however have an excavation on in a couple of hours (5:30pm). The nest is on our first bay so it’s a short walk to the nest.

Everyone is welcome to come and view the excavation, all we ask is that no flash photography is used during the excavation as this can damage the eye sight of the hatchlings.

Please do come down but if you cannot make it this evening do not fret there is going to be plenty more for the rest of the season.

See you soon
Collsy xxx

Excavation tonight (11/08/2011)

Good morning one and all,

Yet another busy morning down on the beach this morning, with a total of 6 nest hatching throughout the night. Therefore, I am happy to say that we do have an excavation on this evening. The site is on our second beach, so there is going to be a convoy of cars needed to take you all down to the nest. We do also ask as we have limited transport today whether someone could be so kind as to take a couple of our volunteers down with them to the nest?

The nest this evening is a loggerhead nest, and is the second clutch of this female this season. We hope that many of you can attend!

See you soon
Collsy xxx

Excavation this evening (09/08/2011)

Good morning turtle followers,

It’s another busy morning down the Goatshed, hence the early blog update, which makes me happy to say that we do have a public excavation on this evening. Same drill as every other night, we meet at the Goatshed for 5:30, where we will give you a small talk before heading off down to the beach to the nest.

The nest this evening is going o be a green nest so there is a possibility of losing a volunteer down the egg chamber so make sure you bring your camera! All we ask is that no flash photography is used during the excavation and any donations are greatly appreciated. If people who have mobility issues, and cannot walk for long distance, the nest is on our 3rd bay, so you can drive straight to the beach bar and when you see a load of red t-shirts making their way across the beach, follow them to the site.

We hope that many of you can attend.
See you then
Collsy xxx

Excavation this evening (07/08/2011)

Gooooood morning turtle followers,

We will be having an excavation on this evening at 5:30pm, meet at GS, where we will be taking you down to the nest from there. The nest today is a loggerhead so hopefully an nice easy excavation for the volunteers later!

Last night it happened, we had an eruption of 7 nests, thus the meaning for this early blog update, me and my fellow day hatcher have a very busy morning ahead of us!
Don't forget to call up at 12pm for a chance to book yourselves in for a release, which I am sure we are going to have plenty of hatchlings for you this evening.

Hope to see you later,
Collsy xxx

No excavations today (6/8/2011)

Good morning bloggers,

I am sorry to say that today we will not be having an excavation at 5:30pm... sad times. However there will still be a release on this evening, so don’t forget to call at 12pm for your chance to book yourself in. (05338798533)

Hopefully there will be an excavation on tomorrow, but we will have to wait and see!
The visitor centre is always open for information on the goings on of the project, so pop on down!

Have a good day!

Collsyxxx

Excavation tonight! (05/08/2011)

Good morning tursty turtle followers,

This afternoon we have another excavation on Alagadi at the same time of 5:30pm meet up at the Goatshed before heading down to the site. The nest that we are excavating this evening is a green nest, being the females fist clutch of the season. As with every excavation we ask that no flash photography to be used during the excavation and any donations that you can give are greatly appreciated. As without your generous donations we would not be able to buy all the cage materials that we are getting through this season!

With this excavation under the belt that make a total of 29 excavations so far this season with well over 170 more to do, making the total of 191 nests this season!!!Definitely one of our record years!

I am afraid to say that we do not have any release on tonight, both the day hatchers on Alagadi and North returned from morning work with no hatchlings thus making a hatchling release impossible. Also I would like to remind people that we are no longer taking any pre-bookings, as we will not know till 12 o'clock whether we have any hatchlings to release. You know our number by now:05338798533.

We hope that we can have another large turnout this evening and hope may can attend!
See you there
Collsyxxx

Public Excavation today at 5.30 PM!

Hello everyone,

We have another excavation for you at half past five today. Meet at the Goatshed in Alagadi and our volunteers will take you down to the nest site on the beach.

Now that laying season is pretty much over, we are not taking any more advance bookings to see the laying females at night. Each morning we collect up hatchlings from hatched nests that didn't make it out in order to boost the numbers that make it into the sea to combat other pressures on the population such as conflict with fisheries. We release these hatchlings and any from the public excavation after dark so they have a higher chance of surviving predation. If you would like to join us on a hatchling release then please call the Goatshed on +90 0533 8798533 around 12pm to see if we have hatchlings that day.

xx

Another excavation!!

Good morning followers,

We have another excavation on this evening down on our second bay. As usual the drill is to meet at the goastshed for 5:30pm where we can take you down to the nest from there.

Tonight the nest that we will be excavating is a loggerhead so we won’t be losing any volunteers head first into the egg chambers trying to reach the bottom of the eggs.

Excavations are coming thick and fast at the moment so if you cannot make it this evening do not fret, we will have plenty more this week. Last night’s turnout was brilliant, and we hope that tonight will be just as big, as without your help and support the project would not be running in top form as it is today. With your generous donations, we are able to afford all the necessary equipment to keep the project going. SO any donations that you would wish to give are greatly appreciated.

As always no flash photography can be used during the excavation, but you are more than welcome to take as many pictures as you wish. So that’s 5:30pm down the GS and down to the excavation site from there.

See you then Collsyxxx

Excavation for the Nation!!!!

Hellllloooooooo trusty turtle bloggers,

Sorry this post is a little late reaching the net, but it’s been another busy morning none the less down at the Goatshed. As we prepare to say a very sorry farewell to Niall, an old returnee volunteer of at least 4-5 years who originally bargained for a two week stay after Robbo's wedding, turning into a 2 month stay, is sadly packing for his return home this evening. He has been backbone to the project and a brilliant mentor to the new volunteers arriving, and we all feel extremely sad to see this wonderful person leave.

However through the sadness comes a glimmer of hope, as we have and excavation on this evening. Last night 3 nests hatched, and the excavation will be held on our second bay of Alagadi. The nest is a green nest, being the female's first clutch of the season, although many hatchlings have already started their great adventure to the sea, we hope to find a few stragglers left behind.

An invitation goes out to everyone to come down to view the excavation, we meet at the Goatshed (HQ) for 5:30pm where we will take you down to the nest from there. May I remind you that no flash photography can be used during the excavation as not only does it potentially damage the eye sight of the hatchlings but will also show up the grubbiness of the volunteers!

If you are unable to make it down to our excavation this evening, do not fear we have plenty of nests still to hatch. If you would like to give us a call on the morning that you are hoping to see an excavation to see whether we have one on, please feel free to on: 05338798533.

We hope to see a good turnout tonight.
Collsy xxx

Excavation Tonight & Weekly Update

Hello Bloggers!

I hope you've all had a great week and have been keeping an eye on all the activity going on here at the Alagadi Turtle Project.

EXCAVATION TONIGHT 6PM:
- Meet at the Turtle Project Base in Alagadi at 6pm
- Please no flash photography as this does tend to show up the dirt on the volunteers
- The excavation is open to all the public so please feel free to come along;the more the merrier!
- Please no dogs to be brought to the excavation
- Donations are greatly appreciated! - As the hatchling season gets into full swing we're all incredibly busy and with your help we can buy the essential equipment that we need in order to sustain our work here.

WEEKLY NEWS:
It's been another crazy week with both Alagadi 1 and Alagadi 2 having multiple activites during our night work. We've had 11 nests hatch as well as many Green females still coming to the beach to nest. There are obviously still Loggerheads in the area as we've had several Logger FCU's (Falso Crawl U-Turns) but we're yet to see one lay.

Watch this space bloggers, i'm sure the next phase of work is only just getting started so if you're interested in coming to one of our excavations or spending an evening/night with us, pop by our office 'The Goatshed' in Alagadi (follow the signs to Turtle Project) or give us a call on 009 0533 879 8533.

Public excavation 6pm tonight

Two more nests hatched last night over on our far beach, so meet us at the goatshed at 6pm to drive round in convoy to the Iki car park.

Second Public Excavation of the season - meet us at Goatshed at 5 PM!

Now that the ice has been broken, hatching season has been moving forwards non-stop. Four nests hatched last night, so it's going to be a busy afternoon!
Join us to see the hatchlings emerge from the sand, and book for next week if you want to see the releases. You can either book by calling 00905338798533, or by coming to the Goatshed. As we've said, we can only know wether we'll have any releases based on the night before, so ring us on on the day that you're coming to check.
Once again, we leave from the goatshed (it's only a short walk to the beach) at 5PM. Thanks and hope to see you tonight!
Turtle Project volunteers xx.

Public excavation tonight - meet at Goatshed 6PM!

After a slow start, the hatching season seems to have finally kicked off. One green and one loggerhead nest hatched last night, meaning we can do our first public excavation of the season tonight.

Meet us at the Goatshed at 6PM to walk down to the nest site on Alagadi Beach. There we will dig up the remains of one of the nests that hatched last night and show you what we find inside. This will mainly be hatched egg fragments but usually also includes live hatchlings that didn't make it to the surface yet. Excavating the nests allows us to increase the number of hatchlings that make it to the sea in an attempt to boost numbers to combat other pressures such as fishing net entanglement of the adults. It also reduces predation, as a hatching nest can easily be located by stray dogs and foxes by the smell emerging from the sand with the first hatchings to come out.

Any live hatchlings that we do find in the nest will be kept until after dark for release when predation risk in the sea is lower. Please make a booking at the goatshed if you would like to see hatchlings released later in the week. We are currently booked up a few days in advance for nightwatch as we are still in the overlap period between laying and hatching. You are welcome to make a booking to see a hatchling release but we will not know until the day whether or not we will have any hatchlings to release, so please call back on the day of your booking to find out.

Thanks and see you later!

52816 has today been inside the port of Latakia, Syria

This loggerhead turtle tracked from the west coast of Cyprus is now spending time in and around Latakia harbour, Syria.

Repeat radio interview on turtles and fisheries in Cyprus

Today at 19:00 you can listen live here: http://www.brtk.net/index.php?Itemid=2

Update on tracked turtles 2011

52816 has now hit the Syrian coast and is heading South.

http://www.seaturtle.org/tracking/index.shtml?tag_id=52816&full=1&lang=

52813 has laid her final clutch at Tatlisu and has bolted in the same direction as 52816.

http://www.seaturtle.org/tracking/index.shtml?tag_id=52813&full=1&lang=

Hello Bloggers!

So it’s been another busy week at the project, it seems many of the females have finally decided to come up to lay one last time and our sleeping patterns have felt the effects!
The week kicked off with a magnificent Green ‘dawnie’ that only ascended at 5am and stayed until 7! Brilliant for me as I won a can of cold drink for correctly guessing her descent time, and everyone got some great photos. She seemed to pass this message on to fellow females as we’ve had dawnie’s nearly every morning this week.

Sadly, a message from our volunteers up North relayed that one nest they’d found had been fully predated by what looked like a fox, the news of which hit us all hard at Alagadi seeing as a fox has also been spotted roaming the beaches here. Spirits remain high though with the anticipation of our first hatchlings as the laying season draws to a close. The Goat Shed is manic with 25 volunteers making cages for nests, notices for visitors and beach users, and generally promoting our work here which has been so well received by our recent visitors – Thank you!

Thanks goes to the stunning full moon on Thursday night for making our night work a stealth operation. Everyone was fully trained in the tuck-and-roll ‘SAS style,’ and following females became a covert operation. One particular Green that made four separate ascents onto Iki Beach was renamed ‘Scary Mary’ as it didn’t matter how far away we were or how little we moved, somehow her sixth sense kicked in and she failed to lay (despite a multitude of body pits).

Five new volunteers have joined the group at the Goat Shed, with some being trained next week to head out West to help with day work, as from the sounds of things they are swamped!

Watch this space as our first hatchlings will be any day now – we have five nests ring caged on Alagadi and one on Iki that are due to hatch soon and are being checked every night. Keep an eye out for our first hatchlings bloggers! We’re sure to put some photos up for you. Till next week – Rhi.

Water Park Fundraising Event 23rd Aug, Lapethos Aquapark

A fund raising event is due to be held at Lapethos Aquapark on 23rd Augus. Tickets can be obtained from Chatteaux Lambousa market from this Saturday onwards.

The radio interview will be repeated on Sunday at 19:00

Robin talks about fisheries conflicts relating to turtles in Cyprus on radio Bayrak International

Today at 19:00 you can listen live here: http://www.brtk.net/index.php?Itemid=2

or tune in to 87.8FM

Loggerhead 52816 has left the island.....

http://www.seaturtle.org/tracking/index.shtml?tag_id=52816&full=1&lang=

Update on satellite turtles

Our male green turtle who got more than he bargained for when we attached a satellite transmitter to him as he rode in up the beach on top of a nesting female, has left Alagadi and has been hanging out off Paphos international airport for the last week. Will he stay there to winter or move of to warmer waters when winter comes?

http://www.seaturtle.org/tracking/index.shtml?tag_id=52818&full=1&lang=

One of two female loggerheads has now left the Guzelyurt/Morphou bay area where she was tagged and has trekked across the north coast over the last 2 days and is now off Karpaz. Will she carry on East to Syria?

http://www.seaturtle.org/tracking/index.shtml?tag_id=52816&full=1&lang=

To keep up-to-date with these turtles and three other loggerheads, and to follow them to their wintering grounds, wherever in the Mediterranean these may be go to:

http://www.seaturtle.org/tracking/?project_id=635

To see tracks of turtles followed in 2010 go to:

http://www.seaturtle.org/tracking/?project_id=514

Tracks from 2009 turtles can be found here:

http://www.seaturtle.org/tracking/?project_id=397

Alagadi update

Hey bloggers!

Today we'll be giving you an update on the turtle nesting at Alagadi. We've just passed the midway point of our nesting season and we currently have 115 nests. Last season we totalled 123 nests so it looks like we are on the way to an impressive nesting season.

Of these 115 nests, 86 are from green turtles and 29 from loggerhead turtles; 23 of these greens and 1 of these loggers are first time nesters. The volunteers are being kept busy during their nightwork, as females seem to be synching their laying - we had 8 nesting at the same time during one night!

Our nightime nesting excursions are still occurring and will continue to until the end of the nesting season (early August). If you would like to join us, please drop by the Goatshed or give us a call on: 05338798533. Please note, we fill up quickly so book your night as soon as possible!

In the following weeks, volunteers will be writing little profiles to inform you about the individuals doing the hardwork of turtle conservation and research.

Until next time.

~JB

We are finally online!

A huge hello there to all our trusty turtle followers!

We apologise for the delay in getting the blog up and running, we had some technical issues that needed to be sorted out before we could log on and update you lovely people. The season so far has been booming with an encouraging sign of clean turtles (no flipper tags of microchips) coming up so far to lay their clutches. Alagadi nesting and our west base nesting is looking very encouraging possibly showing the early signs for another record year! While our north coast seems to be in a period of calm with few nests, the totalling to date, reaching 26. Do not fret however this is most likely to be due to females having their 'break seasons'. We will just have to wait and see what happens next year!

Our nesting excursions are still in full swing, so for those who wish to come and join us for one night, can either book via visiting the Goatshed, or by telephoning us on : 05338798533.

Our first nest of this season is due to hatch within the next couple of weeks, so keep an eye on the blog for news of our public excavations and stories of volunteers experiences on the project.

Fingers cross for a record year... bring it on!
Collsy xxx

2011 season underway

Students have been at the Goat Shed in Alagadi since May 21st and so far the season has been very successful, with many green turtle nests on Alagadi and three satellite transmitters deployed so far (http://www.seaturtle.org/tracking/?project_id=635).

The team are on the beach all night every night and we're now taking bookings for night watch.

Libby's Summary

Ants plague any fool who leaves their Maryland cookies in a non-airtight container. Swallows fly in and out of the sleepy house emitting piercing cries into your sleep deprived brain. Nightly you are peppered with the various stabby appendages of the native dune flora, accosted by the local strays, and mildly frozen on the exposed point of land known as midpoint on Alagadi beach. Why then would I, a volunteer for the Northern Cyprus Marine Turtle Conservation Project, return to these seemingly hellish conditions for two years in a row? Quite simply, it is because it has been one of the best experiences of my life. There is nothing more majestic than seeing a female turtle haul herself out of the sea, the moon glancing off her shell. There is a flicker of happiness for each hatchling you see reaching the relative safety of the same sea a few weeks later. The landscapes of this country are spectacular, the stars startlingly clear and the people some of the most kind hearted, genuine, tirelessly enthusiastic and hard working people I have ever met. Coming here makes you fully appreciate the positive impact that a few individuals can make. It is unbearably cheesy to state that this project has changed my outlook on the world. However, undoubtedly it is true.

Lots of love and hugs
Libby

Turtle Project Cyprus

Turtle Project Cyprus