THOUSANDS AND THOUSANDS OF BABY TURTLES ~ FIVE SPECIES ~ ANCIENT CREATURES

Save the Turtles

For years Iguana Lodge was the sole sponsor of the Save the Osa Turtle Project (ASTO), and we have birthed thousands and thousands of turtles…and during the torrential rains of October, this phrase comes to mind:  “Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers [turtle guards] from the swift completion of their appointed rounds*”.  (While we have neither snow nor sleet – thank goodness, this is the tropics! – we have been up a lot in the middle of the night with sea turtles for years.)

Five species of sea turtles lay on our gorgeous six mile long beach generally between May and December.

As of late, we have been unable to secure the national permits required to allow our project to proceed, but we are attempting to renegotiate this with the Costa Rican government.  We will see!  Meanwhile, the turtles keep coming and every night after sunset during the season, guests can enjoy walking the beach – hoping for a peak at the magnificent creatures.  Hatchings generally occur in the wee morning hours – so take a stroll at first light, and you may see hundreds of the little ones rushing toward the sea.

*FYI: This saying stems from the ancient Greek work of Herodotus describing the Persian system of mounted postal carriers c. 500 B.C.E., and was adopted by the US Postal Service.  BTW, we still deliver turtles on Saturdays.