Kymberlee's Sea Turtle Mission
Donation protected
"If the oceans die, we die" -Capt. Paul Watson
Hi, I'm Kym and I have been given the amazing opportunity to travel to Costa Rica with Sea Shepherd Conservation Society to help defend and protect sea turtles. I have been an onshore volunteer since 2012 and am excited to take this next step but I need your help! Sea Shepherd is an international non-profit, marine wildlife conservation organization whose mission is to end the destruction of habitat and slaughter of wildlife in the world's oceans. Ocean conservation is my passion and what drove me to join Sea Shepherd as a volunteer and now to go on campaign in Costa Rica. I am a full time student currently pursuing a Marine Biology degree in order to make ocean conservation my life's work.
Six of seven species of sea turtles are on the brink of extinction. The odds are against these endangered marine animals from the start, with an average of only one in 1,000 hatchlings surviving to adulthood. Sea turtles are an important part to both marine and land ecosystems. Without sea turtles there would be a negative impact to these ecosystems and to humans. In Costa Rica poaching of sea turtle eggs is a common threat to their survival. I will be in Costa Rica protecting these amazing animals from poaching as well as releasing hatchlings. Sea turtles face a long list of human-induced threats, including entanglement in fishing gear, by-catch, and ocean pollution, but poaching in areas, like where I will be, where there are few sources of income, is actively driving sea turtles toward the brink of extinction.
**Update** I am excited to announce that I will also be traveling to Mexico in September(NOT affiliated with Sea Shepherd, something I do on my own, on my own time) to help the lifeguards on the beaches of Cancun with their turtle release programs. This is a program I have participated in for the past several years, each year getting more involved. I started off just helping release turtles at night. Now I help search for new nests layed from the previous night in the early morning, transplant the nests into a fenced corral, check mature nests for hatchlings, count document and compare the amount of actual hatchlings to original eggs in nest, and lastly release hatchlings at night once it has cooled down. Sea Turtle Hatchlings use the natural light horizon, which is usually over the ocean, along with the white crests of the waves to reach the water. While most hotels do not have lights directly on the beach the lights from the hotels themselves are enough to disorient the hatchlings and send them walking in the wrong direction.
I am happy to say, however, that in the time that I have been doing this I have had the pleasure of ensuring over 6000 hatchlings enter the ocean for their long journey!
It is my dream to be able to make a difference in protecting these amazing animals. I have been given that opportunity and need help making it a reality. I am asking for donations to help fund my journey. By donating you are not only making my dreams a reality but helping defend, conserve, and protect the oceans. Thank you for your consideration.
*Please note that all donations go directly to me to help fund my journey. None of the money goes to Sea Shepherd or any non-profit organization and therefore is not tax deductible*
http://www.seashepherd.org/jairo/
Hi, I'm Kym and I have been given the amazing opportunity to travel to Costa Rica with Sea Shepherd Conservation Society to help defend and protect sea turtles. I have been an onshore volunteer since 2012 and am excited to take this next step but I need your help! Sea Shepherd is an international non-profit, marine wildlife conservation organization whose mission is to end the destruction of habitat and slaughter of wildlife in the world's oceans. Ocean conservation is my passion and what drove me to join Sea Shepherd as a volunteer and now to go on campaign in Costa Rica. I am a full time student currently pursuing a Marine Biology degree in order to make ocean conservation my life's work.
Six of seven species of sea turtles are on the brink of extinction. The odds are against these endangered marine animals from the start, with an average of only one in 1,000 hatchlings surviving to adulthood. Sea turtles are an important part to both marine and land ecosystems. Without sea turtles there would be a negative impact to these ecosystems and to humans. In Costa Rica poaching of sea turtle eggs is a common threat to their survival. I will be in Costa Rica protecting these amazing animals from poaching as well as releasing hatchlings. Sea turtles face a long list of human-induced threats, including entanglement in fishing gear, by-catch, and ocean pollution, but poaching in areas, like where I will be, where there are few sources of income, is actively driving sea turtles toward the brink of extinction.
**Update** I am excited to announce that I will also be traveling to Mexico in September(NOT affiliated with Sea Shepherd, something I do on my own, on my own time) to help the lifeguards on the beaches of Cancun with their turtle release programs. This is a program I have participated in for the past several years, each year getting more involved. I started off just helping release turtles at night. Now I help search for new nests layed from the previous night in the early morning, transplant the nests into a fenced corral, check mature nests for hatchlings, count document and compare the amount of actual hatchlings to original eggs in nest, and lastly release hatchlings at night once it has cooled down. Sea Turtle Hatchlings use the natural light horizon, which is usually over the ocean, along with the white crests of the waves to reach the water. While most hotels do not have lights directly on the beach the lights from the hotels themselves are enough to disorient the hatchlings and send them walking in the wrong direction.
I am happy to say, however, that in the time that I have been doing this I have had the pleasure of ensuring over 6000 hatchlings enter the ocean for their long journey!
It is my dream to be able to make a difference in protecting these amazing animals. I have been given that opportunity and need help making it a reality. I am asking for donations to help fund my journey. By donating you are not only making my dreams a reality but helping defend, conserve, and protect the oceans. Thank you for your consideration.
*Please note that all donations go directly to me to help fund my journey. None of the money goes to Sea Shepherd or any non-profit organization and therefore is not tax deductible*
http://www.seashepherd.org/jairo/
Organizer
Kymberlee Prince
Organizer
San Diego, CA