Cozumel Turtles

Cozumel’s Sea Turtle Program 2015: How You Can Get Involved

 by Adrian Cozumel

The Cozumel Municipal Department of Ecology is running a turtle program with different activities  again this year –  this is a government program that solicits donations – where 100% of the money goes directly to help the turtles.  This is different than “tours” that are being offered by .com’s or tourist facebook pages – please be aware) In order to track the funding and keep it transparent, Bracelets are sold to those participating in the various activities.   Bracelets for this can be purchased at the Palacio Municipal, the Department of Ecology and while they last at my offices at  Eagle Rider Harley Rentals. There are 3 different activities – listed below. The Cozumel Turtle Trailer located on the windward, or “wild side” of the island is now open.  (Monday – Saturday.  Closed Sunday) and will be open from now until Mid- November when turtle season ends.

The first activity is the  “Search & Rescue of Turtle Nests.”  You (and your bracelet) will need to be at the turtle trailer at 3:30 pm.  This is a mandatory orientation that allows you to go out and find turtle babies that would have otherwise not made it out of their nests without your assistance. You’ll also have the opportunity to participate in the natural release of the turtles that day.   The cost of this tour is $25 USD for children and adults.   You must have your own transportation, since the location of the Search & Rescue changes daily.

The second activity is to attend the Natural Release Only, which is $20 USD for children & adults.  Again, you must have your own transport and meet at the Turtle Trailer at 5 pm – where you will follow the truck to the natural release site. This is a guided experience with trained volunteers from the City’s Ecology program on-hand to supervise.  If you do not purchase a bracelet you will be asked to watch only from the roadside.
The third activity is the Night Nesting Program.  The cost of this is $40 USD for children & adults. This tour runs from 9 pm to midnight (more or less depending on the turltes)  This is where you will be able to see the turtles arriving, nesting and laying their eggs.  Again, the location of this tour is subject to change depending upon where the turtles are.

Please keep in mind that you’ll need to allow some flexibility with time, and that the locations will change.  Turtles are wild animals and don’t adhere to our schedules.  There will also be the opportunity to contribute additionally to the Municipal Department of Ecology through the purchase of t-shirts and other items.  Mexican Island Resident do not have the obligation to pay,   so please consider this is the rights of the locals to appreciate the natural wonders.

For more detailed information about the programs at the Ecology department visit their offices located at the Centoe Park  on 65ave with 13th and 31south.  You can also call them at 9878725795 Biologist Lemuel Vega speaks excellent English and Spanish.

Adrian Cozumel is a life-long resident of Cozumel and a partner in Eagle Rider Harley Rentals.  He is very active in both environmental programs, as well as charities throughout the island.

For more great Cozumel Information

This story originally appeared in the weekly Cozumel 4 You NEWS – the island’s number one source of positive information about our island!  Be sure and subscribe to the weekly NEWS to find out all the island events!

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Laura Wilkinson

Author at Cozumel 4 You

An ex-Connecticut Yankee who has called Cozumel home for over 18 years, Laura ran away to the Caribbean years ago, bumped around the islands teaching SCUBA diving, lost some time in Jamaica, and finally stopped in Cozumel for a 2 week vacation that hasn’t ended yet. With a degree in Journalism from a fancy private college she convinced her parents to pay for, Laura writes, edits, and creates the weeklyCozumel 4 You news,social media, and promotional articles about the island, as well as moderates the Cozumel 4 You Facebook group, which currently has over 25,000 members. Her long suffering husband, Fabian, has long since resigned himself to having zero private life, as he’s been involved in her various schemes and plots since his arrival. Proud parents to a variety of rescue dogs and cats, Laura continues to be the bane of her traditional Mexican mother-in-law’s existence, as she muses her way through life in the Mexican Caribbean.
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Una ex yanqui de Connecticut quien llama hogar a Cozumel desde hace más de 15 años. Laura escapó al Caribe hace años, desplazándose de una isla a otra dando clases de BUCEO. Se dedicó a perder el tiempo en Jamaica y finalmente se detuvo en Cozumel para pasar unas vacaciones de 2 semanas que aún no terminan. Convenciendo a sus padres que pagaran una elegante universidad privada, obtuvo su título en Periodismo y Laura crea semanalmente Cozumel 4You, medios sociales y artículos promocionales sobre la Isla y también es moderadora en el grupo Cozumel 4 You en Facebook que actualmente cuenta con 25,000 miembros. Fabián, s umuy tolerante marido, desde hace mucho tiempo se resignó a no tener vida privada, pues se ha visto implicado en los diversos proyectos y planes que urde Laura. Son orgullosos padres de diversos perros y gatos rescatados. Mientras contempla su paso a través de la vida en el Caribe mexicano,Laura continúa siendo la pesadilla en la existencia de su muy tradicional suegra mexicana.

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