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Tortuguero Beach – National Park & Sea Turtles Nesting

Tortuguero is amazing.  Everything about every visit makes us want return again and again.  This time we were there for the turtles and timed our visit to coincide with the second half of the nesting season for the Atlantic Green Sea Turtle, Chelonia mydas mydas.  October is perfect because the females are arriving on the beach in peak numbers to dig nests in the sand and deposit eggs.  Even better there are significant numbers of turtles nesting in July and August so there are thousands of babies hatching out of the sand on Playa Tortuguero.

We arrived by air on a SANSA flight from San José and the excitement started before we even touched down.  As we flew over the national park dozens of tracks in the sand showed where the turtles had come ashore the previous night.  We departed by boat to the north then west along the Río Suerte to La Pavona which is the main terminal for visitors.

Turtle tracks on Tortuguero beach
Turtle tracks on Tortuguero beach as we came in for a landing were the first hint that this would be a very sucessful trip to Tortuguero
Runway in the Jungle
Red eye tree frog
Baby turtle shell. Not every turtle makes it from the nest to the water.
Jaguar, Panther onca (Spanish-Tigre). Jaguars are among the most endangered of the big cats and encounters in the wild are nearly unheard of. One of the best places to see one is feeding on a freshly killed sea turtle on the beaches of Tortuguero National Park.
Turtle tracks
Tracks leading to the nesting femal green turtle. The gray spot is all you can see of her shell because she’s deep in the sand
Heaving up out of the nest depression to head back to the Caribbean
Green Sea Turtle, (Chelonia mydas mydas, Spanish – Tortuga Verde) The attrition rate in nests is quite high both from natural causes and egg poachers, but a lot of the danger has passed for this hatchling that’s made it to the water off Tortuguero beach. (Alexander Gaos)
A little girl watching as a baby sea turtle heads out to sea
Green Sea Turtles Mating, (Chelonia mydas mydas Spanish – Tortuga Verde) most mating occurs offshore, but occasionally turtles are observed mating on the beach like this pair at Tortuguero. (Alexander Gaos)
Leatherback Sea Turtle, [i]Dermochelys coriacea[/i] (Spanish-[i]Tortuga Baula[/i]). Hatchlings push their way through the sand before making thier ungainly dash to the surf. (Alexander Gaos)
Leatherback Sea Turtle, (Dermochelys coriacea Spanish – Tortuga Baula). Hatchlings churn their flippers frantically in swimming motions to make their way to the surf. (Alexander Gaos)
Green Sea Turtle, (Chelonia mydas mydas, Spanish – Tortuga Verde) Returns to the Ocean after an exhausting night of nest building and egg laying. (Alexander Gaos)
Green Sea Turtle Hatchlings, (Chelonia mydas mydas, Spanish-Tortuga Verde) making a mad dash down the beach to the sea. (Michelle Kinzel)
red eye tree frog
beetle
stingless bees
sleeping red eye tree frog
Not your ordinary field trip – this school group encountered an iguana poolside
It took about six tries to get this photo of the soldier bees guarding the entrance to their mud nest. Every time I got close and started to reach out with the camera they exploded out and bombarded my head with “zzZZZZZzzz” ferocity and I skedadled as quickly as possible with visions of my eyelids swelling shut or not being able to eat for a week from being stung on the tongue. After a couple of trys I realized they were stingless bees and and although their attacks were still disconcerting I relaxed, approached slowly and calmly and managed to snap a shot before they exploded into my face in response to the flash.
Bee’s nest made of mud.
Watch the tail – getting a close-up
Cruising the canals and senderos acuaticos in a kayak you’re almost guaranteed to see a dozen species of aquatic and wading birds, caiman and otters… when you look ashore or actually pull ashore and walk all of the terrestrial species are well represented. Then, not only do you have at least 3 species of sea turtles that nest giving you a unique chance to see these aquatic animals, but in the remoter parts or the park sitting quietly on the beach at night is one of your best chances to see a Jaguar as they patrol looking for turtles.
Playa Tortuguero
Its not unusual to see a bird in Costa Rica with a leg band. They may have been trapped and banded thousands of miles away migrated.
Playa Tortuguero
Several thousand tough stabilizing roots up to 20 meters (66 feet) long wind through the loose sand from the base of coconut (Coco, Cocotero, Cocos nucifera) trees which are rarely toppled even by the strongest hurricanes, Tortuguero Beach
Boats pulled up at the muelle La Pavona
Boats pulled up at La Pavona. Late in 2019 plans for building a dock (muelle) were announced – completion expected in 2021.
La Pavona-Tortuguero boat prices
Hiking out from where the boat ran aground to the end of the road where the bus was waiting at La Pavona
Waiting in a shady tree for the boat to Tortuguero

Ray & Sue

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Costa Rica National Park Photos
  • Tortuguero Beach – National Park & Sea Turtles Nesting
  • Tortuguero Village & Canals Photos
  • Savegre National Park
  • La Cangreja National Park Photos
  • Carara National Park Photos
  • Irazu Volcano Photos
  • Tenorio Volcano Photos
  • Tortuguero Photos
  • Turrialba Volcano Photos
  • Arenal National Park Photos



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