People are supporting wildlife conservation
Humans and turtles: we can all live together. Anyone who visits the Rescue Centre or meets ARCHELON volunteers on the sea turtle nesting beaches of Greece, understands the effort that goes into realizing our goal.
For 40 years, ARCHELON, a non-profit Association, has been monitoring and researching the sea turtle populations and habitats of Greece as well as rescuing and treating injured and sick turtles found all over the country. However, these actions, as well as raising public awareness actions for nature and the environment, could not become a reality without ARCHELON’s volunteers and supporters.
More than 1,300 symbolic sea turtle adoptions were made in 2022. Almost half of the "adopters" were people who met the volunteers during the summer in Rethymno, Zakynthos, Chania, Kyparissia Bay, Koroni and Lakonikos Bay. There they learned about the dangers that threaten these marine animals, the importance of the few nesting beaches for their survival and they received instructions on how to behave on the nesting beaches. They ‘adopted’ a baby turtle, a mother turtle or a nest, making it possible for us to cover 110km of nesting beaches, protecting more than 3,800 sea turtle nests. "It gives us great pleasure that some of our friends from the nesting areas renew their adoptions every year and have a whole collection of stuffed ARCHELON turtles", says Elli Tarabe, ARCHELON’s Communications Officer.
The average daily costs of treatment and food for an injured sea turtle at the Rescue Centre is 5€. The ‘adoptions’ at the ARCHELON Rescue Centre in Glyfada are supporting the injured sea turtles under care, and cover each animal's nutrition and medicine for one month, 10 days or even a few days, as several school classes do.
"We especially thank all the children who collected money to cover the costs of a hospitalization for an injured turtle at the Rescue Centre", says Anna Kontoleon, the Education Officer of ARCHELON. About 10,000 students and teachers in schools from all over the country participated in educational activities, during 2022.
Many people decided to ‘adopt’ after visiting the Rescue Centre, impressed by the work done here for the wellbeing of wildlife. Several others chose to book a Sea Turtle Rescue Tour, available with a 10 day sea turtle adoption. With their support it was possible to continue the care of 29 turtles from previous years and receive 33 new arrivals of injured and sick sea turtles. "We welcomed about 11,000 visitors during 2022, who were informed about sea turtles and the marine environment and contributed, in one way or another, to the safe rehabilitation of 32 turtles back into the sea after their recovery at the Rescue Centre” says Dimitris Fytilis, the Rescue Centre Manager.
The amount raised from the donations of volunteers, students and visitors at the Rescue Centre in Glyfada and the Information Stations in Zakynthos, Peloponnese and Crete was €350,000. "None of ARCHELON’s achievements would be possible without the financial support of these people. We owe everyone a huge THANK YOU", says Daphne Mavrogiorgos, the Director of the organisation.
The effort continues in 2023. At the moment, the ARCHELON Rescue Center hosts 16 sea turtles, which are being treated for head injuries or lung infections. You can cover the medical expenses of one of them by making an adoption. Each adopter receives a certificate and informative material for their turtle as well as the ARCHELON newsletter.
Make an adoption now.
Find out more about the sea turtles currently at the Centre.
Find out more about how to support ARCHELON.
Waiting list for schools that want to visit the ARCHELON Rescue Centre
Gail Schofield
RECENT NEWS
- OUR NEWS15/09/2023
Lilo, the tiny green turtle, made it back to the sea!
In November 2021 a small green turtle arrived at the ARCHELON Rescue Centre with a very serious head injury. After almost two years of intensive care, one Wednesday in September 2023 he was finally discharged and returned to the sea!
- OUR NEWS17/08/2023
World record of 37 years of reproductive life for a loggerhead sea turtle in Zakynthos, Greece – increased number of nests this summer, says ARCHELON
ARCHELON – the Sea Turtle Protection Society of Greece announces an important outcome of the systematic work of this year's sea turtle nest monitoring team in Zakynthos. Based on their long-term observations, ARCHELON managed to certify a new World Record of reproductive activity for loggerhead turtles.
- OUR NEWS07/08/2023
ATTENTION! Sea turtles are not pets: Do not touch them or feed them!
The Municipality of Eastern Mani and the Port Authorities requested the assistance of ARCHELON to inform beach users in the area of Limeni, near Mani, where 35 new incidents of sea turtle attacks on sea bathers have been recorded during this summer season. These are added to the already long list of 200 such records of previous years found in the nearby Health Center in Areopolis.
- OUR NEWS01/08/2023
Interview with a volunteer: Lea Heinen, Rescue Centre
Interview with a volunteer: Lea Heinen, Rescue Centre Lea shares her experience volunteering at the ARCHELON Sea Turtle Rescue Centre: “I think when a turtle starts to eat after a month of trying, when you can see the improvement or healing of a turtle's injury and when a turtle is released back into the sea, into its natural habitat, into its home - then you know that you are indeed saving turtles”.
- OUR NEWS21/07/2023
Kids Beach Competition 2023: Make your own little sea turtle with natural materials and send us a photo!
Help us spread the message about the protection of sea turtles by making your own baby turtles with natural materials you will find on the beach. Sand, stones, pebbles, shells, seaweed, sticks and whatever else you have available, can be transformed with a little imagination! Take a photo of your work and send it to the ARCHELON Beach Competition.
- OUR NEWS18/07/2023
Paving the way for next steps in conservation of marine turtles in the Mediterranean region
Last week the partner organizations of the project “Conservation of Marine Turtles in the Mediterranean Region” met for the 9th Steering Committee Meeting. The meeting was organized by SPA/RAC in the area of Kyparissia Bay, Greece on the 4th and 5th of July, 2023 in collaboration with ARCHELON.
- OUR NEWS04/07/2023
An offer to EXPERIENCED volunteers: You can now join the beach projects for 2-3 weeks!
The time is just right to join the projects again, even if you have only 2 or 3 weeks of available time. This offer is valid for August, September, October 2023. Apply through our new website and find out more about the dates and places you can join. More…
- OUR NEWS22/06/2023
The nesting season has begun! Learn what you can do if you find sea turtle tracks or nests on the beach
The nesting season for the loggerhead sea turtles has begun. The nests that are made in the areas monitored by ARCHELON and other collaborating groups are already being recorded. However, if you find tracks or nests on other beaches, you can also participate in the effort to record and protect these sporadic nests. Find out why it's important…
- OUR NEWS16/06/2023
A breath away from registering a new world record on the years of known active reproduction of a loggerhead sea turtle is ARCHELON, the Sea Turtle Protection Society of Greece
This is the year when ARCHELON, a nonprofit environmental NGO, is celebrating 40 years of continuous and targeted action to save sea turtles in Greece and the Mediterranean. At the same time, the project teams of ARCHELON are ready to register the longest period of active reproduction known for the Loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta), in case it happens this year!
- OUR NEWS15/06/2023
A Saturday unlike any other - Turtle Festival 2023
ARCHELON invites kids and adults to celebrate the environment and the sea in an exciting way at the "Sea Turtle Festival" on Saturday, May 27 at the Sea Turtle Rescue Centre in the 3rd Marina of Glyfada.
- OUR NEWS07/06/2023
Announcement for all past volunteers of ARCHELON: Shall we meet this September?
Highlight: Hi everyone! This year marks 40 years of ARCHELON’s action for protecting sea turtles in Greece. During these four decades, thousands of volunteers from many countries joined our sea turtle projects and the Rescue Centre to help save the turtles. Let’s meet again this coming September and celebrate the animals we saved during all these years.
- OUR NEWS07/04/2023
Waiting list for schools that want to visit the ARCHELON Rescue Centre
Thousands of Greek students visit the Centre and get informed about the value of protecting the environment through contact with a particularly beloved animal, the sea turtle. "All the available visiting hours until the end of the 2022-2023 school year have been booked, but there is a waiting list that is activated in case of cancellations", says Anna Kontoleon, ARCHELON’s Education Officer. More hours for online tours may be added in May if volunteers become available.
- OUR NEWS24/03/2023
Gail Schofield
We learned with deep sadness the passing away of Gail Schofield, a pronounced sea turtle researcher and former ARCHELON volunteer. Read more…
- OUR NEWS20/03/2023
More than half of the rehabilitated sea turtles got released back to the sea in 2022!
The Sea Turtle Rescue Centre of ARCHELON in Glyfada rescues, takes care of and rehabilitates injured sea turtles from all parts of Greece since 1994. More than half of the sea turtles that were under care at the Rescue Centre in 2022 got released back to the sea after reaching full recovery this year! Read more…
- OUR NEWS13/03/2023
Over 5,800 nests monitored by daily walking on sea turtle nesting beaches in 2022!
In the summer of 2022, ARCHELON volunteers/researchers walked daily over 100 kilometres of nesting beaches, monitoring and protecting, where necessary, nests and hatchlings. Few of them will make it to adulthood, somewhere between one in 1000 and one in 10,000. Learn more…