Category: For the Record

Annual Turtle Crawl Continues Inclusive Format, Draws More Participants

Posted on | by Matthew Humphrey

By John Bennet

JIA Marketing Communications Manager

The annual Jekyll Island Turtle Crawl—taking place March 14, 2020—is shaping up to beat its own record.

Previously a triathlon-focused race, the event was revamped last year to offer new race formats and attract a wider variety of participants. The decision has proved to be a wise one, as nearly 1,000 people participated in the 2019 Turtle Crawl 10K, 5K, and family 1-mile Fun Run. With early registration numbers at an all-time high, 2020 participation is on track to surpass last year’s totals, which is good news for patients at the Georgia Sea Turtle Center.

Since 2003, Turtle Crawl has raised more than $100,000 to support the GSTC’s mission of sea turtle research, rehabilitation, and education. Once the domain of elite athletes, Turtle Crawl now appeals to people of all ages and abilities, according to Jekyll Island Authority events manager Ainsley Toal, who organizes the event.

“Turtle Crawl has truly become an event for everyone, and it’s been especially fun to see parents and children running and walking together for a cause,” she said. Racers three years old and up can participate in the Fun Run/Walk, which is held on the beach.

Still, even with Turtle Crawl’s broader appeal, it remains popular with more competitive runners, Toal said. The 10K is a qualifier for the AJC Peachtree Road Race in Atlanta, with medals awarded to the first, second, and third place finishers, both males and females, and by age groups. The Turtle Crawl course, which follows the shoreline and winds through maritime forest, is also famous for being fast, flat, and offering out-of-this-world scenic views.

“They are truly racing virtually,” Toal said. “They receive the same t-shirts as participants who join us on Jekyll Island, so they can wear them proudly wherever they are.”

Maintaining Coastal Dune Muhly Meadows on Jekyll with Prescribed Fire

Posted on | by Matthew Humphrey

By Joseph Colbert

JIA Wildlife Biologist

Muhly grass—or “sweetgrass”—meadows are a rare coastal habitat found only in four states along the south Atlantic east coast. These meadows are some of the most productive wildlife habitats found along the Atlantic east coast, harboring high populations of small mammals and predators that rely on them. Muhly meadow habitats have been widely reduced due to their locality along beaches being converted to coastal development.

Muhly grass also has cultural significance as it has been historically used by Native Americans and Gullah-Geechee peoples of the southeast to make beautiful baskets.

This January, JIA’s conservation department used prescribed fire to maintain a restored muhly meadow along Beachview Road. Using fire helps maximize the grass community and prevents bushy trees like wax myrtles and pines from taking over. When the conservation department implements a prescribed fire, they choose conditions that allow for a methodical and safe fire that can be controlled. Burns are accomplished early in the year as it warms up so the plants in the muhly meadow may begin growing back right away.

The overall goal of a prescribed burn is to restore, maintain, and enhance muhly meadows on Jekyll Island for visitors, residents, and wildlife to flourish and enjoy these rare and beautiful habitats.

Hollybourne: 20 Years of Preservation

Posted on | by Matthew Humphrey

By Stephanie Jackson

JIA Museum Educator

The preservation of Hollybourne has been a project near and dear to many hearts for over twenty years. The Bridge Builder’s Cottage, as it is often referred to, is unique among the many cottages on Jekyll Island. This project, while long from complete, is allowing us to preserve the beauty of the cottage for future visitors to the island. Many volunteers have donated their time to the project over the years, and many groups such as the Jekyll Island Foundation have helped to fund renovations for the cottage. In recent years, Jekyll Island has brought on a preservationist to oversee the project and to assist our wonderful volunteers. Taylor Davis, Jekyll Island’s historic preservationist, began his preservation journey at Hollybourne. He has been involved with projects on the island since 2004, back when he was an intern here on the island. Taylor’s appreciation for Hollybourne is evident the moment you ask him about the building:

“The incredible thing about Hollybourne is that it was shuttered since the beginning of the state era. The fortunate thing about this is that because it was shuttered, there are no changes from the mid-century such as painted wood trim that we have had to correct. Now that we are in the process of preserving the cottage, we are very thankful for our dedicated volunteers and the Foundation. Thanks to everyone’s hard work, we are able to return the cottage back to its original state.”

But there is a lot more work to be done. If you are looking for a small way to help support this project, while getting a chance to see the interior of the cottage, then join us for a special tour of the Bridge Builder’s Cottage! Tours will take place every Saturday during the month of May. Each tour will be led by one of our knowledgeable guides and provide an opportunity to see the beauty of this unique cottage. As tours are only offered at special times during the year, they fill up fast. Sign up today in order to reserve your spot on this special behind-the-scenes opportunity! Register on Ticketleap.

Blast from the Past

Posted on | by Matthew Humphrey

By Breanna Ondich

JIA GSTC Research Specialist

“Throughout the summer months (May – August), the beaches of Jekyll Island become more than just a place to stroll, collect seashells, and catch breathtaking sunrises. During the evenings, these beaches are visited by female loggerhead sea turtles determined to lay their eggs without interference. About 60 days later these same beaches are paths to a new life for hundreds of loggerhead hatchlings.”

If it were 1999 you could have picked up a brochure with these words, encouraging you to learn more about The Jekyll Island Sea Turtle Project’s “Adopt a Loggerhead” program, which would have allowed you to follow the progress of the enormous sea turtle you saw while on a guided tour the night before. Long before the inception of the Georgia Sea Turtle Center, many dedicated Jekyll Island Authority staff and volunteers helped raise money for their sea turtle monitoring and conservation work by allowing visitors to symbolically adopt a nesting loggerhead sea turtle. For $35, your adoption would have included an official certificate, photograph, hatching announcements, turtle sticker, key chain, and a poster! One of the turtles you could have adopted twenty-one years ago was Althea, and she returned to nest on Jekyll Island last summer.

Althea is the oldest known turtle we have on our growing list of nesting mothers, based on the fact that we know she was given her first set of flipper tags in 1992. You have got to give this turtle some credit, not only because of her longevity but also because of her ability to overcome the odds in a sea full of threats. Althea has five healed parallel lacerations bisecting her carapace from an unfortunate, but luckily non-fatal, interaction with a boat propeller. Boat strikes are a top threat to sea turtles in coastal Georgia, and while many sea turtles do not survive interactions with vessels, Althea pulled through on her own and is now a key data point in our ongoing study assessing injuries among the sea turtles that visit Jekyll Island.

The deep, permanent scars on Althea’s back remind us why we are working tirelessly around the clock to study these ancient animals. When the days are long, our research team feels grateful for the gears that keep us rolling forward, such as our UTVs. This summer Jekyll Island is expected to be busier than ever, not only with booming tourism but also with nesting sea turtles like Althea! Our team covers many miles every day and every night in the course of our education and conservation work, and it is all thanks to the support of the Jekyll Island Foundation and its network of donors.  

KEY WORDS - HIGH LEVEL

Pollution Problems for Marine Turtle Moms

Posted on | by jif-admin

By Breanna Ondich

GSTC Research Specialist

Visit the Georgia Sea Turtle Center and get an up-close look at turtle rehabilitation in action, explained inside the Learning Center and Rehabilitation Pavilion through educational programming, interpretive displays, and interactions with educators. Since it may not always be front and center, you might miss the fact that staff is always busy with research behind the scenes.

Research is one of the foundations of the Georgia Sea Turtle Center and studying nesting female Loggerhead Sea Turtles and monitoring their nests is the flagship project. The Center collects important and unique data to help understand the biology of these animals, identify threats, and monitor their recovery. Sea turtle research has been conducted on Jekyll Island since the late 1950s. Long-term wildlife monitoring programs are particularly important for species that live for many decades, like Loggerheads, as they provide an understanding of their biology and their response to conservation efforts and habitat change over long periods of time.

It is not novel news that sea turtles face numerous, high-profile threats such as being hit by boats, getting caught by active or abandoned fishing gear, ingesting plastic pieces, competing with coastal development for nesting habitat, and poaching. However, while invisible to the eye, water polluted with contaminants known as persistent organic pollutants (POPs) are also threats to sea turtles. POPs leach into rivers and oceans from common items like plastics, antibiotics, and human personal care products and can cause a depressed immune system, poor body condition, and low hatch success (fewer offspring) in sea turtles.

Beginning in 2019, the GSTC partnered with collaborators from the University of Georgia, Florida Atlantic University-Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute, and Loggerhead Marinelife Center to find out if Loggerhead Sea Turtles that nest on Jekyll Island have these POP contaminants in their blood and if they are passing them down to their hatchlings.  GSTC research and veterinary staff use the UTVs funded by the Jekyll Island Foundation to intercept as many nesting sea turtles as possible to collect blood samples once the turtles have already committed to laying eggs. While Research AmeriCorps Members remain on the beach to continue surveying for nesting sea turtles, other staff head to the lab to process blood samples for analysis. This is the first study (that we know of) that aims to discover if POPs exist in wild Loggerhead Sea Turtles and the GSTC depends on- and is grateful to- Jekyll Island Foundation donors to keep the research in motion – quite literally.

New Georgia Sea Turtle Center License Plate Now Available

Posted on | by jif-admin

By John Bennett

JIA Marketing Communications Manager

The redesigned Georgia Sea Turtle Center specialty license plate features a friendly and familiar face. The popular “happy turtle” image is a prominent part of the new plate, which was designed by Jekyll Island Authority Art Director Claire Davis. Her goal was to create a “colorful and engaging design,” but also to convey the importance of the work being done at the center. “I wanted to emphasize the idea that when people purchase these plates for their vehicles, they are truly making a difference,” she said. “Using this well-known image of a Georgia Sea Turtle Center patient seemed to be the ideal way to accomplish that.”

Because the photo is also used on the GSTC website, on vehicle wraps, and in print publications, incorporating it into the license plate builds a consistent and recognizable visual brand, and strengthens the image’s association with the center and its mission.

The new plates are now available through county tag offices across the state and for each license plate purchased or renewed, $10 flows back to Jekyll Island. When it’s time to purchase a plate for a new vehicle or renew an existing plate, sea turtle supporters can apply for a GSTC specialty license plate through the same process used to apply for a standard plate. If a county tag office does not have the GSTC specialty license plate in stock, a temporary operating permit is issued, then the GSTC plate is mailed to the applicant.

In addition to generating revenue, the new plate also builds awareness of the GSTC, making the center’s location on Jekyll more distinct, and helping to raise the profile of the island as a whole. “People who purchase this plate are really contributing twice,” Davis said. “First through their financial support and then by promoting the Georgia Sea Turtle Center and Jekyll Island wherever they go.” Davis said she’s been gratified by the feedback she’s received and looks forward to seeing the plates out “in the wild.”

Those who live outside the state of Georgia can help promote the center, too, as decorative versions of the plates that can be displayed on the fronts of cars will be available for purchase at the GSTC gift shop.

“It’s time to take your love for sea turtles on the road!  Order Georgia’s new ‘Turtle Tag‘ today and help support the Georgia Sea Turtle Center.

New school field trip program at Mosaic

Posted on | by jif-admin

By Stephanie Long

Mosaic Museum Manager

A stroll through a museum is often accompanied by the voices of school children on a field trip. With the opening of Mosaic, The Jekyll Island Museum, the education staff has been working on creating new field trip experiences for students coming to Jekyll Island. Educators identified over 130 Social Studies and English Language Arts Georgia Standards of Excellence that serve as the basis for the programs now being offered to schools.

The opening of Mosaic provides new opportunities to host school groups. Students are invited to engage with educators and tour guides in the new exhibit gallery, exploring the natural and cultural history and environment of Jekyll Island, from prehistory to today. The interactive exhibits like the virtual Red Bug, the Eagle’s Nest, and the Magic Mirror have been quite popular with students of all ages. The Tack Room classroom allows for accommodation of larger school groups with more room for hands-on activities. Capacity will be further increased by the completion of the outdoor education space directly behind the building.

Field trips also include the chance to explore one of the cottages in the historic district while learning about the history of the families who lived and worked in them, what they ate, how they used the land, and more. Students will explore differing points of view on prominent members of the Jekyll Island Club, contrasting their lives with others from the same era. Each 90-minute encounter covers various Georgia Standards of Excellence, encompassing kindergarten to high school.

Recently, school tour information was disbursed to area teachers. Mosaic staff received several immediate responses from teachers enthusiastic about bringing their students to Jekyll. As a friend of Jekyll Island, if you know a teacher, class, or student group that would benefit from a trip to Mosaic, please contact educator Emma Smith at esmith@jekyllisland.com or (912) 689-9294 for more information. Tours may be customized to focus on particular subjects and/or to complement existing lessons. To schedule a field trip, please call the group tours desk at (912) 635-4168.

Historic Preservation and Conservation staff are grateful for the generous funding provided by donors of the Jekyll Island Foundation to support new curriculum development for the museum. To build on Mosaic by continuing to add new and exciting features the Foundation welcomes you to GIVE NOW and keep the Mosaic momentum going.

Diamondback Terrapin on Jekyll Island

Posted on | by jif-admin

By Michelle Kaylor, Rehabilitation Manager and

Aislinn Wright, Educator I

Jekyll Island Authority’s Georgia Sea Turtle Center

The 2019 Diamondback Terrapin (DBT) nesting season officially ended on July 26th.  From the first terrapin found on April 7th to the last on July 30th, 485 adult females were encountered while attempting to nest on the Jekyll Island Causeway.  Of those 485, 360 were safely measured, weighed, provided a health assessment and identification code, and then moved off the road – that’s a save rate of about 75 percent!  SO EXCITING!

A total of 194 eggs were collected – from females struck by cars during their attempt to cross the road – and placed in incubators at the GSTC.  We are happy to say that over 82 eggs have already successfully hatched!

One special case was a female named Jicama. She was struck on the causeway and fortunately survived. Under GSTC staff care, screws and wires were used to stabilize her fractured shell. Jicama did not have the chance to lay her nest before being struck, so she still had eggs inside her. She was later induced to lay them in the GSTC hospital. After incubating approximately 45 days, the first of her babies emerged from their eggs on July 16th!

It isn’t often that a terrapin survives a vehicle strike, so this was a special moment to see both the mother survive and her babies hatch after such a traumatic event. More of her eggs hatched over the next few days, and eventually Jicama and her babies were all able to be released back into the marsh. Another WIN!

The 2019 Diamondback Terrapin Road Season could not have been successful without the support from YOU, the Jekyll Island Foundation’s donors.  Please continue to support the DBT work by clicking here. 

Mosaic Outdoor Education Programming

Posted on | by jif-admin

By Emma Smith, Educator

Jekyll Island Authority Museum

As one of the new educators for the Mosaic Museum, I am very excited to be a part of Jekyll Island. I came into this position with a lot of ideas for programming at the Mosaic, along with the museum’s outdoor space, known as the “Paddock”. The ability to move some programs outside provides a unique way for us to educate and entertain our guests. In fact, we’ve already begun utilizing the space.

For a look at the full rendering booklet, click here.

On October 18, the Mosaic will host its first 21+ event: Cocktails and Costumes. This program harkens back to the costume parties held by Jekyll Island Club members. It will be held in the “Tack Room”, the multi-purpose room within the building, as well as the Paddock. Guests are encouraged to come dressed in costume and enjoy a spooky evening with us.

We are hosting an Archaeology Day event on November 15 to give guests the opportunity to participate in their own dig, make pinch pots, throw atlatls, and explore other family activities.  Archaeology can get a little messy, so the Paddock provides a great space for this hands-on interaction with the island’s history.

We’re already thinking ahead to Spring Break and next summer. The Paddock will be the site of camps, hands-on history crafts and demonstrations, historic games, and nature programming. We have so much history to explore, and we plan to keep our guests busy!

The Paddock gives us a great place to extend our programs outdoors. We can spread out and allow guests to interact with games or activities and even get a bit messy. It also allows us to simultaneously host separate events in the Tack Room and the Paddock without bumping into each other. The Paddock area covered, making it usable year-round. When finished, the Mosaic terrace will provide the perfect extension for our programming. To help complete this educational space, visit Jekyll Island Mosaic.