Start and End Dates:	* Availability based on group reservation.	For Reservations / Information Call Toll Free: 1-866-701-2113 To Contact Us Via Email Fill Out Our Web Inquiry Form
Duration:	6 nights
Location:	Cozumel Island, Mexico
Price starting at:	* Price based on group size and seasonal availability.
Program Type:	Intergenerational; Nature, Science, & Technology; Service Learning.
Meals:	Breakfast and dinners daily.

Join us on a 7 day true Cozumel Island adventure to the 2nd largest barrier reef in the world. New divers to experienced divers welcome. We offer a learn SCUBA program in conjunction with our turtle conservation program. The program includes breakfast and dinner prepared for you at your private beach front house.

During the nights of April through September, on the Eastern shore of Cozumel, two species of turtle come ashore to lay their eggs on the beach. The turtles, known as the loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta) and the green turtle (Chelonia mydas), generally lay from 100-150 eggs and can nest up to 6 times in one season. Roughly 60 days later, the young hatchlings emerge at the surface of the nest, at night when the temperatures are cooler, and immediately head for the ocean following the light reflected off of the water’s surface. In addition, the bays and reefs of the Cozumel area are also foraging areas where sea turtles such as hawksbill (Eretmochelys imbricate) and giant leatherback (Dermochelys coriacea) have been sighted swimming just offshore.

The indigenous Mayan population of Cozumel has enjoyed consuming turtle meat and turtle eggs as part of their diet for hundreds of years. Being large, clumsy animals that are easily captured while nesting, white sea turtle meat became a staple part of every Mayan family’s food supply. The meat is cooked and plated or prepared in a soup while the eggs are a favorite among drinkers at local cantinas. Myth has it that consuming the raw turtle eggs will improve a man’s virility.

Perhaps the turtle populations of past eras could support such consumption but this is not the case now. Only through education of younger generations combined with strong salvation programs will anyone be able to save the sea turtles from extinction.

During the Cozumel nesting season, the City works in co-ordination with local police and Federal armed forces to limit activity on the east side at nights during turtle nesting season. In the evenings of nesting season, only the salvation program participants with specifically designated biologists, interns, and volunteers are allowed to walk the beaches in search of nesting female turtles, turtle nests, and recent hatchlings. Among their duties include the protecting and tagging of females, the collection scientific data, the relocation of eggs to more favorable locations on the beach, and the release of hatchlings to the sea. From the data collected, the salvation program is then able to determine turtle hatching success, behavior, distribution, and population. In 2003 – 2004 island tourism increased significantly with the opening of several new hotels and many more cruise ships stopping in Cozumel than ever before. With this increased activity all around the island, the local population became more aware of conservation related issues. In response to community calls, the City increased its conservation efforts overall and as a result the Turtle Salvation Program has received more attention and funding than in the past. Even so, the Turtle Salvation Program of Cozumel can be considered in its infancy and still lacks resources to do all of the research and investigation that is necessary each year (1).

For participants and kids ages 9-12. Maximum two youths per adult. Adults
are responsible for the supervision of the children they bring.

(1) http://www.cozumelinsider.com