Help Save Sea Turtles

Highlights

• Explore Costa Rica, one of the most amazing countries in the world
• Experience the relaxed "tica way of life"! Tica refers to how the Costa Ricans call themselves :-)
• Boost your CV adding international volunteer experience
• Make new friends from around the world while sharing with other international volunteers
• Visit amazing places throughout a country that is famous for its breathtaking landscapes and beaches

During your volunteer work you support a turtle protection project in a nature reserve in Costa Rica. This is located on the Nicoya Peninsula, in the province of Guanacaste in the northwest of the country and covers an area of around ​​243 hectares.

The area was declared a Natural Reserve by the Costa Rican Government in 1994, as the beach in this region is considered one of the most important places in the country for sea turtles nests. In addition to the turtles, there are of course numerous plant, mammals, bird and reptile species that need to be protected.

As part of your volunteer service, you'll be assisting the local team to monitor endangered sea turtles while they are laying their eggs, secure the nests and dig up the eggs, if necessary, to keep them safely in incubators until the baby turtles hatch after about 45-60 days. The work on this volunteer project is incredibly exciting, as some of the adult turtles can weigh up to 700 kg and really impress with their beautiful, up to 2.5 meter long shells. Despite their huge size, it is extremely impressive how quickly they dig the hole in the sand for oviposition and deposit up to 60 eggs there.

You can get involved in this project with all your energy to help preserve the sea turtles. Here you will get to know volunteers from all over the world and join them in experiencing the breathtaking biodiversity of Costa Rica.

At the beginning of the voluntary work in the nature reserve, the newcomers are welcomed with an orientation session. During your volunteer work in Costa Rica, you are involved in a project that protects and monitors the population of the sea turtles in the south of the province of Guanacaste. You will be taking exciting night patrols along the Pacific beaches to observe rare turtle species and monitor their habits and behaviors. The tours are never undertaken alone, but always in teamwork with other volunteers and / or with local project staff. The sea turtles come to the beach all year round for oviposition in the region, however, the period from July to December is considered high season. At this time, up to 30 nests per night can be secured! In the months of January to June, with an average of five turtles per night significantly fewer animals come to the beach, but still enough to observe them closely and to cooperate in the protection project.

It is important to collect and analyze the data collected in order to control the populations of sea turtles. The feeling of being able to see these mystical but endangered creatures up close is incredibly exciting! In this region also the so-called leatherback turtle lays its eggs. It is the largest turtle species in the world, reaching a length of up to 2.5 meters and a weight of up to 700 kg. This turtle species prefers oviposition in the region from October to February. After successful breeding season of 45-60 days the hatchlings search their way to the sea which is a dangerous mission. The aim of this project is to protect sea turtle eggs from predators and illegal abduction (turtle eggs are traded as delicacies).

During the day, volunteers sometimes also take environmental education lessons in the surrounding schools to make the children aware of the sensitive ecosystem, in particular the specificity of sea turtles, and to ensure a more conscious approach to the environment and its fauna. Likewise, the volunteers work during the day in the breeding station on the evaluation of the data that they could capture during the nightly inspection.

Weekends are the perfect time to enjoy an exciting hike through Costa Rican nature since the main attractions of Costa Rica is its system of national parks and protected areas, which cover around 25% of the national territory, in order to protect the rich variety of flora and fauna, which is estimated to contain 5% of the world's biodiversity in less than 0.1% of the planet's land mass. In addition, Costa Rica has countless amazing beaches on both the Pacific and the Caribbean Ocean. 

Costa Rica is the perfect place to combine volunteer work with tourism, enjoy activities like:

- Adventure sport
- Dream beaches
- Ecotourism
- Local culture
- Bird / wildlife watching
- Visits to unique National Parks
- Rural tourism
- Sightseeing and history in San José