Category: About

Frontera’s GSTC Experience

Posted on | by Matthew Humphrey

By Michelle Kaylor, Director of the JIA Georgia Sea Turtle Center and Terry Norton, Director of Veterinary Services and Animal Health

Pillar #1: Rehabilitation: Focus on the individual patient

FRONTERA

Kemp’s Ridley sea turtles are one of the most critically endangered species of sea turtles.  In March 2021, the Center received a Kemp’s Ridley sea turtle traumatized by a dredge on the Georgia/Florida border.   At this life stage, staff are unable to determine the turtle’s sex, but for simplicity’s sake we will call her a female.  This injured turtle was named “Frontera”, Spanish for border.

When Frontera arrived at the GSTC, she received a full assessment to determine a course of treatment. She was extremely lethargic, had several fractures and trauma to her shell and skin, and could not open her eyes. She was immediately placed on oxygen therapy and then provided treatment for her eyes, including antibiotic drops, ointment, pain medications several times per day, and blood plasma transfusions using her own blood plasma (blood is a complex combination of numerous solids, including red blood cells that carry oxygen, and liquid plasma. Plasma contains enzymes and immune cells that assist in healing). To further assist in Frontera’s recovery, she was given nutritional and hydration support intravenously, and antimicrobial therapy. Her shell was surgically stabilized with screws, wires, and marine epoxy. Frontera has improved dramatically, especially as her appetite has normalized.  She is likely to return to the wild in the early autumn if her positive recovery trend continues.

BEHIND THE SCENES

Instrumental to Frontera’s recovery is the regular use of a therapeutic laser. The Jekyll Island Foundation was actively involved in securing funds for, and the purchase of, the laser, as well as a state-of-the-art x-ray machine and ultrasound equipment. Many of the wound care products used in the healing process include items purchased because of generous donations – honey, RediHeal, Buck Mountain wound bomb, bone cement, food, medical supplies, and so much more.

Thank you! for supporting the Georgia Sea Turtle Center.  We could not do what we do without YOU!

To help support the ongoing work of the GSTC, click HERE.

Find Pillar # 2 HERE, Pillar #3 HERE.

STAY TUNED

The care provided to patients by the GSTC rehabilitation team focuses on the animal, helping them survive and thrive.  Pillar #2 – Education – is woven throughout the work of the Georgia Sea Turtle Center and turns the focus to the human animal.  Stay tuned to see how Education is at the heart of the Georgia Sea Turtle Center.

Author’s note: Established in 2007, the Georgia Sea Turtle Center (GSTC) is a hospital that primarily cares for sick and injured turtles – the only wildlife hospital focusing on turtles in the state of Georgia. The mission of the GSTC encompasses three pillars: 1) Rehabilitation, 2) Education, and 3) Research. Through these pillars guests are connected to individual patient stories and the broader threats these animals face. Since opening its doors in 2007, the GSTC has successfully released over 600 sea turtles.

Record-Setting 2021 Turtle Crawl

Posted on | by Matthew Humphrey

Did you know??

Since 2003, participants from across the world have taken part in the annual Turtle Crawl event, all in the name of supporting the Jekyll Island Authority’s (JIA) Georgia Sea Turtle Center’s (GSTC) mission of sea turtle Rehabilitation, Research, and Education. In that time, participants have raised nearly $100,000 to help sea turtles thrive and survive. 

The 2021 Turtle Crawl broke its fundraising record and became the largest, singular fundraising event. The annual race, held virtually May 1 of this year, raised a record-setting $24,858 through the generous support of our donors and the Jekyll Island Foundation (JIF).

Support the Center! Click HERE.

Hear Their Stories

Posted on | by Matthew Humphrey

By Andrea Marroquin, JIA Museum Curator

At Mosaic, Jekyll Island Museum, a listening station in the museum gallery gives voice to people who were held in captivity on Jekyll Island during the 1800s.  Listen to these moving accounts from the past, in remembrance of Jekyll Island’s enslaved community.  Personal testimonies, based on historic letters, newspaper articles, and oral histories, detail real-life experiences of slavery from Jekyll Island’s plantation past.

Among the accounts are stories of enslaved men, women, and children, like Umwalla, brought to Jekyll Island aboard the slave ship Wanderer in 1858.  Born in Guinea, West Africa, Umwalla was kidnapped at ten years old, trapped aboard the Wanderer, and sold into slavery in America.  In 1888, he described his capture, voyage aboard the slave ship, life in slavery, and memories of home.

Today, the Wanderer Memory Trail at the south end of Jekyll Island follows in Umwalla’s footsteps, sharing the story of survivors of the slave ship Wanderer.  The trail is located at the St. Andrews Picnic Area, along the banks of the Jekyll River, where the ship illegally came ashore in 1858 with approximately 407 enslaved Africans.  

Made up of a series of interactive, self-guided exhibit stations, the Wanderer Memory Trail follows Umwalla’s journey, from Africa to Georgia and from slavery to freedom.  Stations along the trail represent the experiences of the Wanderer Survivors, including their transatlantic voyage, sale into slavery, pursuit of freedom, and lasting legacy of cherished cultural contributions.

The Wanderer Memory Trail marks a site of memory associated with the UNESCO Slave Route project.  This project endeavors to protect and promote the important contributions made by African Americans to the historical and cultural heritage in those areas where the captive Africans arrived.

To learn more about Black History on Jekyll Island or to read The Water and the Blood from 31•81, The Magazine of Jekyll Island: Vol. 3 No. 1, click HERE.

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Rollin’ with Research

Posted on | by Matthew Humphrey

By Dr. Tom Radzio, Research Ecologist

If you happen to visit Jekyll Island during summer, you will likely see the JIA Georgia Sea Turtle Center Research Team patrolling our 8 miles of beautiful beaches for nesting sea turtles.  Off they go, day and night, looking to carefully locate all sea turtle nests on the island as part of long-term work to understand the status of our loggerhead sea turtle population.  The vehicles on which they ride, two beach-hardened UTVs, are important tools to conduct this conservation work, enabling the team to patrol large spans of beach quickly and thoroughly.  The UTVs also help provide guests memorable, close-up wildlife experiences in our Ride with Night and Ride with Dawn Patrol public programs. 

Although the team takes special care of these important vehicles, the salt and sand cannot be avoided and one of the GTSC research UTVs is showing signs of wear.  Recently, the Jekyll Island Foundation generously provided the team with a brand new UTV and, until the old one is retired, the research team is using the new vehicle for off-beach turtle research.  The crew also conducts research on box turtles, using miniature radios for tracking in order to understand how these species navigate and use semi-developed golf course and residential environments.  Additionally, in an expanded initiative this year, UTVs were put to good use for a freshwater turtle population study.

If you see one of our UTVs driving by, rest assured that the GSTC are grateful to have these vital research vehicles because of your generous support. We thank you and hope you may join us on one of our Ride with Patrol or other fun excursions to see the animals that we all work together to protect!         

To support the ongoing work of the Georgia Sea Turtle Center, click HERE.

A Symphony in Color

Posted on | by Matthew Humphrey

By Alexa Hawkins, JIA Director of Marketing & Communications

“Color is to the eye what music is to the ear.” Those words could not ring truer than in the methodical placement of tiny fragments of glass. Each piece is individually cut, colored, and placed, playing its part, striking a chord, and transforming simple shards into a symphony conducted by rays of the sun.

Aptly named “David Set Singers Before the Lord” and harmoniously orchestrated by Louis Comfort Tiffany, there’s nothing more magnificent than the one-hundred-year-old masterpiece that sits within Jekyll Island’s Faith Chapel. In celebration of the famed Tiffany window’s centennial year, visitors can now experience an immersive exhibit within Mosaic, Jekyll Island Museum.

Highlighting the history of the man who brought the masterpiece to life, take a peek inside the world of Tiffany Studios and learn how stained glass was methodically crafted. View the original artistic renderings for the window, including Tiffany’s hand-written signature within the original Jekyll Island Club register. And try your hand at ‘painting in glass’ with a life-sized, interactive replica of the window that welcomes you to explore the history of Jekyll Island.

Visitors can experience Faith Chapel through an expert-led tour and see the one-of-a-kind window in person to appreciate its significance to the island. Those fond of Tiffany’s pristine, artistic style can also explore the gift shop’s limited anniversary collection in celebration of the window.

Its beauty is difficult to replicate and impossible to forget. Join us as we celebrate 100 years of this unique piece of Jekyll Island’s history.

Celebrate Preservation Month

Posted on | by Matthew Humphrey

By Allison Dupuis, JIA Museum Educator

The story of Hollybourne Cottage began in 1890 when Charles Stewart Maurice, one of the original members of the Jekyll Island Club, chose a plot of land for his family’s winter residence. Maurice’s personality and interests were evident in Hollybourne’s very construction. Maurice was a partner in Pennsylvania’s Union Bridge Company, and he incorporated bridge-building techniques into Hollybourne. The brick piers in the basement, steel support system, and truss system that supports the second floor are all examples of Maurice’s techniques.

Hollybourne’s construction incorporated a mixture of its owner’s passion for his work and his newfound enthusiasm for his family’s winter vacation home. Hollybourne is the only cottage in the Jekyll Island Club compound to be built out of tabby, a local mixture of sand, water, lime, and oyster shells, reflecting Charles’s and his wife Charlotte’s interests in the history and culture of the area. The Maurices’ personal investment in Jekyll Island’s history led them to spearhead the restoration of Horton House and the Dubignon cemetery in 1898. Charlotte died in 1909 and Charles died in 1924, but their family’s Jekyll Island story didn’t end there. Their nine children, especially their daughters Margaret and Marion, were similarly devoted to Jekyll Island, and spent every winter season at Hollybourne Cottage until the Club’s final season in 1942.

Hollybourne sat empty and in a state of disrepair for several decades. Beginning in 1998, however, the cottage became an ongoing preservation project for the Jekyll Island Authority and a host of volunteers. Most recently, volunteers and preservationists spent several months restoring and preserving Hollybourne’s windows. Holllybourne’s present as an ongoing preservation project, as well as its past as a home for a family focused on the preservation of Jekyll Island, make it a perfect destination for this May’s annual celebration of Preservation Month. Visitors can see the family and servant areas of the cottage and observe the preservation process in action or take part in programs that highlight Historic Preservation Month, like family history programs and an outline of international design at the Jekyll Island Club.

To reserve a spot on a tour of Hollybourne Cottage or at one of our Preservation Month activities, click HERE  or to help preserve and restore Hollybourne Cottage, click HERE to donate.

Nesting Loggerheads

Posted on | by Matthew Humphrey

By Davide Zailo, Research Specialist, and Dr. Tom Radzio, Research Ecologist

Here on Jekyll Island, the unofficial start of summer is heralded by the arrival of nesting loggerhead sea turtles. These behemoths of the ocean can reach over 300 pounds and lay up to seven nests of 100+ eggs each in a single season. Some turtles will place all their nests on Jekyll Island whereas others will distribute them among multiple islands. Nesting females are at least 25 years old and very important to the survival of their species. Counting and studying nests allows us to estimate numbers of adult females and determine whether our loggerhead population is increasing, stable, or declining. The long-term data suggest a slowly increasing population, rebounding from dangerous lows at the turn of the century.

Monitoring loggerhead nesting and performing conservation-oriented studies is the responsibility of the JIA Georgia Sea Turtle Center Research Team, which includes two staff members and a talented and dedicated group of AmeriCorps Service Members. This summer, the research will include a new component, work to better understand how nest temperature influences egg development and hatchling characteristics, such as size. After hitting the books and training hard for two months, AmeriCorps Service Members start patrolling the beach in early May.  This is an exciting time as the anticipation of finding the first nest of the season builds day by day!  

From May to July, the GSTC Research Team patrols Jekyll Island’s beaches throughout the night to encounter as many nesting loggerhead sea turtles as possible. These ‘Night Patrols’ allow the team to study females directly, collect nest data, and provide unforgettable experiences for guests in our nighttime Education programs. To ensure that nesting is not interrupted, researchers carefully watch emerging turtles from a distance until they start to lay eggs. At that point, females enter a ‘nesting trance,’ which allows them to be safely examined.

At 6:00 am, a smaller team takes over to perform daily morning surveys. These ‘Dawn Patrols’ cover all of Jekyll Island’s beaches for a thorough accounting of nests laid during the previous night. Dawn Patrol crews also perform a daily check of each nest to document its progress throughout incubation, a process that requires about 50-65 days, depending on nest temperature. Five days after hatchlings emerge, the nest is carefully excavated to assess egg hatching success and collect other information. In addition to valuable data, excavations provide wonderful opportunities for public engagement, including the chance to see a live hatchling.  

These efforts would not be possible without your continued interest and support. We thank you as we strive to learn more about our native wildlife and build towards a more sustainable future. Here’s to a happy and productive turtle nesting season!

To support the ongoing work of the Georgia Sea Turtle Center, click HERE.

Preserving the Gullah Geechee Heritage

Posted on | by Matthew Humphrey

By Andrea Marroquin, JIA Museum Curator

The Gullah Geechee culture can be found along the Southeastern coast of South Carolina, Georgia, North Carolina, and Florida.  The name Gullah Geechee comes from the African-based, creole language of the community, composed of a combination of West African, English, French and Portuguese languages.  Gullah typically refers to the islanders located in South Carolina, while Geechee refers to those living along the coast of Georgia and Florida. 

The ancestors of the Gullah Geechee people came to the United States as enslaved Africans, beginning in the 1700s.  The enslaved men and women brought to this area from West Africa came from a variety of different nations, but they shared many similar cultural traditions.  Together, they created a unique culture, blending their traditions with those of others, in order to adapt and survive in this new place.

Today, members of the Gullah Geechee community have maintained their ancestral practices and ways of life for more than 250 years.  Griffin Lotson and Yvonne Grovner, like many before them, teach others about the Gulluh Geechee heritage in an effort to preserve these traditions for future generations.  

Geechee Gullah Ring Shouters, heard here in an interview with Griffin Lotson, keep the “praise break” alive. This ritual or dance often took place during or after a Christian prayer meeting or worship service. Men and women would move counterclockwise in a circle, shuffling their feet, clapping, and often spontaneously singing or praying, including calls, cries, and shouts. It is still primarily practiced among Christians of West African descent.

Sweetgrass baskets were a traditional West African craft, also brought to America by enslaved Africans. Made using marsh grasses, sweetgrass baskets had many practical uses within day-to-day activities. The ancient tradition of basketmaking continues as one of the oldest art forms of African origin in America.  Today, Yvonne Groover teaches sweetgrass basketmaking classes throughout the region. For more of Yvonne’s story and basketmaking classes, visit Master of the Craft. Sweetgrass baskets made by Gullah Geechee artisans can be found on exhibit at Mosaic, Jekyll Island Museum.

STAY TUNED! In our June Seasonal Island Series, we’ll take a look at the history of the Wanderer, as well as the new Wanderer Memory Trial, found on the south end of Jekyll Island.

Learn more about Black History on Jekyll Island.

2021 Virtual Turtle Crawl

Posted on | by Matthew Humphrey

By Erin Evors, JIA Social Media Manager

Turtle Crawl is back! Created in 2003 as a fundraiser for the Georgia Sea Turtle Center (GSTC), the Turtle Crawl races have continued to support the Center’s mission of sea turtle research, rehabilitation, and education. Since its inception, race participants have raised more than $100,000 to help sea turtles survive and thrive.

This year, to ensure the health and safety of all, the 2021 Turtle Crawl is going virtual! Run from your favorite stretch of sand or pavement on Saturday, May 1, 2021 to mark the start of sea turtle nesting season. Loggerhead, Kemp’s Ridley, and Ghost Crawler registrations provide multiple participation levels. Loggerhead registration is available for the first 200 participants at $40 per person, and participants receive a race T-shirt and medal. Kemp’s Ridley, the standard registration, is $30 per person and participants receive a race T-shirt. For those looking to sleep in and still support the Center, Ghost Crawler registrations are available for participants to provide donations in increments of $5.

Become a sea turtle ambassador and race for a cause by registering for the 2021 Virtual Turtle Crawl Race, where every turtle-loving supporter is a winner! Looking to support the Center in other ways? Consider a symbolic adoption to directly support many of the Center’s current patients undergoing rehabilitation, or text SAVETURTLES + any donation amount to 844-889-2692 to provide financial support for patient care and resources needed to continue the life-saving work.