Our Mission: Direct Protection of Sea Turtles and Their Eggs from Poachers (over 20 years)
Poachers show up at nesting beaches in the cover of night to steal her eggs. Sometimes they come for her meat and kill the turtles on the beach when they come to lay their eggs. Poachers may transport them on boats, one on top of another or kill them in the jungle. Then they sell the turtles’ meat and their eggs in the black market.
The nesting process takes hours. A sea turtle must dig a hole 2 to 5 feet deep to deposit her eggs. Afterwards, she must carefully fill and camouflage the hole – her last attempt to protect the offspring she must leave behind.
Sea Turtle Patrollers make the difference. Patrolling is a direct protection, boots-on-the-ground job. It’s difficult—sometimes dangerous—but a highly effective conservation tool. Countless sea turtles and habitats exist today that would not without community-based heroes. These dedicated individuals walk the beach through the night, often in tropical downpours. When they find a nesting turtle, they sit with her, protecting her until she returns to the ocean and safeguarding her eggs thereafter. When the hatchlings emerge, patrollers protect them on their first journey to the ocean.
HELP US SAVE SEA TURTLES IN 2026
Donations support salaries of turtle patrollers who protect nesting sea turtles and their eggs from poachers in Costa Rica, El Salvador, Nicaragua and the Philippines. Your donation goes a long way to support sustainable sea turtle protection while also teaching the youth in these countries about sea turtle conservation and inspiring future generations. Options are available for individualized tributes and special occasions with $30.00 donation.
Sea Turtle Gifts for everyone. All purchases are earmarked to save sea turtles and their eggs. Discover creative Sea Turtle and Nature Designs for all turtle lovers: gifts, apparel for all ages, home decorations, holidays, art, hats and more.
How Your Donation Helps
Save the Turtles—a grassroots, all-volunteer nonprofit—has worked to protect endangered sea turtles since 2001. Your donation helps fund community-based turtle patrollers in Costa Rica, Nicaragua, and the Philippines. Nearly all the money we raise goes directly toward protecting sea turtles. By supporting these projects, you also help inspire young people to care for sea turtles and their natural habitats—building the foundation for lasting change for generations to come.
Why care?
Marine Biologists know sea turtles are essential for the health of our eco-system. They are vital for the health of our oceans and on land. Each of the 7 species provide critical behaviors which support a sustainable environment. For example, Green Sea Turtles eat sea grass keeping our sea beds short providing breeding grounds for fish and other marine life to thrive. Turtles’ eggs are essential for healthy beaches giving nutrition for vegetation necessary to keep our dunes from eroding.
Sea Turtle Gifts: Find these designs and hundreds more at Shop and Save Turtles
Saving the planet, one turtle at a time …