Kalamaki/Laganas turtles

bunnymadhouse · Jun 27, 2009

i was fascinated by the turtles while on hols in Zakynthos..

these are some we saw while on a boat ..

they are HUGE easily as big as a wheelie bin lid .
The turtles use the beaches at Kalamaki and Laganas as nesting grounds . They come out of the water at night , dig a hole and lay eggs . The eggs hatch 60 days later and each nest usualy has around 120 eggs . so thats a lot of baby turles scuttling to the sea during september .
The turtles then disappear for 25 yrs before coming back to the beach where they hatched to bread ...only a 1 or 2 from each nest survive to adulthood .
They can live to 80 to 100yrs old .

the beaches they nest on are busy with tourista and there are lots of volunteers and the "turtle police" who patrol the beaches making sure the nests arnt tampered with . Each nest is marked out with a wooden cage .

Minimallow · Jun 27, 2009

I'd love to see turtles. Saw a documentary on the wee babies hatching and trying to get to ocean before the birds got to them. Gorgeous

bunnymadhouse · Jun 27, 2009

awww does no one else like the turtles

caerleon · Jun 27, 2009

i do i do!love there so cute ive got my own tortoise too! here he his first time outside!

caerleon · Jun 27, 2009

your pics are great too any more?!

donnamt · Jun 27, 2009

awwwwwwwwww what fantastic creatures

and to see them wild must be truely amazing

BunMom · Jun 27, 2009

I love sea turtles!

They look like wise old souls to me. I am so jealous, I have never seen one that large in the ocean, or for that matter, anywhere.

bunniemum · Jun 27, 2009

Oh wow! I'm so jealous, I bet that was amazing, I would love to go see them. When are the best times to go there, and did you get to see any laying on land at night?

We went to Corfu last year and I was really hoping to see some wild tortoises, I kept looking out for them but didn't find any

Pringle · Jun 27, 2009

great pics

id love to see them xx

Jeffalina · Jun 27, 2009

caerleon said:
i do i do!love there so cute ive got my own tortoise too! here he his first time outside!

OOOOOOH he is so BEAUTIFUL!!!

bunnymadhouse · Jun 27, 2009

bunniemum said:
Oh wow! I'm so jealous, I bet that was amazing, I would love to go see them. When are the best times to go there, and did you get to see any laying on land at night?

We went to Corfu last year and I was really hoping to see some wild tortoises, I kept looking out for them but didn't find any

end of june and august is best time to see them ..

cant get to see them at night as tourists arent allowed on the beaches between 7 at night and 7 in the morning .

if you want to be there when they are hatching best time is september ....but again as they usualy hatch at night its unlikely you would see them
on land .

~ Cat ~ · Jun 27, 2009

I got goose bumps - they are awesome!!!

I found a wild torty in Corfu just plodding down the road! He was wonderful!

If you ever go to Corfu in May look out for the fire flies - they are amazing!

Fabulous pics - I so want to be in that sea!

bunnymadhouse · Jun 27, 2009

~ Cat ~ said:
I got goose bumps - they are awesome!!!

I found a wild torty in Corfu just plodding down the road! He was wonderful!

If you ever go to Corfu in May look out for the fire flies - they are amazing!

Fabulous pics - I so want to be in that sea!

we saw the fireflies in Corfu around 10 yr ago ...brill

~ Cat ~ · Jun 27, 2009

bunnymadhouse said:
we saw the fireflies in Corfu around 10 yr ago ...brill

Its magical aint it! I didnt have a clue what they were first time I saw them, it was like there were millions of fairy lights all over. x

bunniemum · Jun 27, 2009

bunnymadhouse said:
end of june and august is best time to see them ..

cant get to see them at night as tourists arent allowed on the beaches between 7 at night and 7 in the morning .

if you want to be there when they are hatching best time is september ....but again as they usualy hatch at night its unlikely you would see them
on land .

well, it's good to know they are so well protected

bunniemum · Jun 27, 2009

~ Cat ~ said:
I got goose bumps - they are awesome!!!

I found a wild torty in Corfu just plodding down the road! He was wonderful!

If you ever go to Corfu in May look out for the fire flies - they are amazing!

Fabulous pics - I so want to be in that sea!

Wow!.... and I so wanted to see one as I had read about them in Gerald Durrells book (even though he had written it quite a few years earlier).

~ Cat ~ · Jun 27, 2009

It was in a very quiet area just outside Kavos - about a mile out. He was a big one too. What a life!

willowholly · Jun 27, 2009

You lucky lucky girl!All these years I've been going to Zante & never seen 1 turtle!They look huge!

antigone · Jun 27, 2009

The boats are sailing very close to the turtles and that must be terrifying for the poor animals.

Additionally, the lights and noise coming from the restaurants and hotels by the beach disorientate the turtles. Not to mention the injuries caused by speed boats.

I don't blame the tourists but those who show complete disregard for the rights of an endangered species in order to make a profit. I don't believe that the Greek authorities are doing enough to protect the turtles and have been repeatedly accused of not complying with EC legislation. I don't think that animal rights are a priority in Greece. And before somebody accuses me of being a racist/ politically incorrect, I should state that I come from Greece.

bunnymadhouse · Jun 27, 2009

antigone said:
The boats are sailing very close to the turtles and that must be terrifying for the poor animals. Additionally, the lights and noise coming from the restaurants and hotels by the beach disorientate the turtles. Not to mention the injuries caused by speed boats. I don't blame the tourists but those who show complete disregard for the rights of an endangered species in order to make a profit. I don't believe that the Greek authorities are doing enough to protect the turtles and have been repeatedly accused of not complying with EC legislation. I don't think that animal rights are a priority in Greece. And before somebody accuses me of being a racist/ politically incorrect, I should state that I come from Greece.

some of the boats ..especialy the bigger ones certainly must be frightening ..

we made sure that the the boat we were on was endorsed by the zakynthos turtle protection society ... they follow strict guidelines and part of the profit goes to the protection society.
in truth ..out of an hours boat ride we were only around where the turtles were for around 10 to 15 mins ... the bigger privatly owned boats though were around much longer

Kalamaki/Laganas turtles

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