baby Sea Turtle ReleaseS: PINS
Baby Sea Turtles! They are so cute, I just wanna eat them up.. as does pretty much every predator out there. Enter- the sea turtle hatchling release events, where people participate by being large and walking the sweet bebes across the beach to the water. The public is invited to a limited number of hatchling releases each year on the Texas coast, and this is how to go about doing the thing.
In July 2014, me and my family had the opportunity to witness a large release of a batch of freshly hatched Kemp Ridley sea turtles at Malaquite Beach at the Padre Island National Seashore. The actual releases are scheduled for 6:45am but I recommend you plan on arriving in the parking lot of the Malaquite Beach Visitor Center at 6:15am so you have time to park and flock around the awesome park ranger who will give you a full rundown of all things sea turtle, give you information on how to help these amazing creatures escape extinction, answer your questions, etc. It was such a great time, we’ve gone a few more times since then. We’re hooked!
After milling about for a bit, around 6:40am the park rangers invite the group down to the beach. I highly recommend getting down there quickly to find a good spot; the area where the hatchlings are released is taped off with the public kept some distance away from these adorable reptiles.
As you walk down the board walk, look out for critters. Our last visit we saw a *beautiful* rattle snake. It was awesome to have a great view but to be out of striking distance.
During the release, a couple rangers did walk up with babies in hand to give the kids an up close look, but if you are thinking you will be able to get in there with them, you will be disappointed. The hatchlings are brought out of boxes and placed on the sand and their funny little march to the water takes anywhere from 10-40 minutes. Plan to stick around a little while after to enjoy this beautiful beach. We bumped into a group of children registered in the National Parks Junior Ranger program who spent a couple hours after the release walking along the shoreline collecting trash. Those kids are my new heroes and those parents are absolutely Doing It Right.
White clothing, white shoes, flashlights and flash photography are not allowed at the release, as all of these disorients the hatchlings. Food is not allowed as it attracts predators. If you are bringing children, or are a human that requires sustenance, I suggest you and your family come fed and keep snacks in your car. The drive out there and back is gorgeous, but long, and there is a distinct lack of coffee shops or stores of any kind for many miles. We chose to find our post-release breakfast joint in Port Aransas, but it was a long time for the kids to wait for a real meal. Learn from my mistakes- embrace food. And coffee.
Releases typically happen some time between mid June to the end of August, but it all depends on when those babies are ready and if conditions are right. This year, there were no public releases after July. So keep close tabs on official channels.
It takes about 30 minutes to drive from hotels on North Padre Island to the release site. Plan accordingly. If it looks likely that the release is happening, be sure to purchase an entry pass for your vehicle for the right day.
**Always check the Facebook page or call the number just after 2am the morning you plan on attending a release to verify that the release will occur prior to dragging your family out of bed before dawn. These good folk work really hard to give the public access to some releases, but there are a lot of variables that can change their attempt at a schedule.**
For more information, please visit the National Park Service- Padre Island National Seashore website at https://www.nps.gov/pais/learn/nature/hatchlingreleases.htm
To hear a recorded message providing information on hatchling release dates, please call the Hatchling Hotline at 361-949-7163
I personally kept tabs on public releases via their Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/PadreIslandNPS as it seemed to have the most up to date information.
First Published 2014
*Post Updated September 2023