After a long waiting, restless efforts and patience the researchers of ARCHELON in Rethymno, recorded on 4 June in the morning, the first nest of 2017 in Crete, in the region Sfakaki.

The daily life of the association’s volunteers includes an early awakening in the morning to check and record the nesting beaches natural state and to find traces of sea turtles that will lead them to their nests. During a process that may last plenty of hours, the volunteers having lots of patience and love towards that rare species, that continues to visit the island of Crete, stay at the beach until they detect and protect the nests.

The first nest was located in Rethymno on a beach in the region Sfakaki. Due to the expand erosion of the ground, the beach has shrunk and there is not the required safe space for the nests. Therefore, the researchers have to relocate them to more secure spots, in order not to be ruined by the wave.

The Cretan sea turtles prove to us for another year, that they are the most ancient visitors of the island, honoring it with their presence. We hope and wish the Cretan hospitality, that is famous all around the world, continues to welcome the sea turtles and that keeps protecting and preserving the natural habitat, by just applying the simple protection measures that ARCHELON suggests. The protection measures refer not only to the specie but also to the nesting beaches. Those very important beaches are visited by a large number of tourists every year, for the exact same reasons that the sea turtles do. For the quality of the beaches, for their sandy landscape and the good climate. The volunteers of ARCHELON, who are located on three nesting beaches in Crete, the gulf of Rethymno, the gulf of Chania and the gulf of Messara, wish you a great summer and wait to inform you and make you daydream with their stories about the island of Crete and the “Cretan” sea turtles.

You can find the volunteers of ARCHELON, daily at the informative spots of our association, at the Venetian Port of Rethymno, the old port of Chania and at the entrance of Matala beach. They may also be found, daily from 05:00 in the morning, at the beaches of three regions (from Delphini to Skaleta in the gulf of Rethymno, from Kato Stallo to Kolympari in the gulf of Chania and from Chomo to Kokkinos Pyrgos in the gulf of Messara).

Information: Nikolopoulou Athanasia, ACHELON Crete Program Coordinator, tel.: +30 6937352379 fb: ARCHELON Crete, ARCHELON, the official page

(translation: Ourania Theodorakakou)