Sea Turtles Forever was just an idea back in 2002. We had a goal to protect one nest , that became a goal to protect 100% of the Sea Turtle nests layed in the Punta Pargos, we are reaching that goal.



Together has become our key word , the volunteer help that has gone into the project over the last three years has been inspiring. Many people from all around the globe have participated in our Punta Pargos Project. And I have been in awe of the dedication they have shown to protecting our precious marine wildlife. Working under extremely demanding conditions for thier love of turtles, and nothing more.

All in all the bottom line is about the hatchlings and we have produced about 8000 of them over the last three years, that is one measure of our success. I am still doing calculations on the cost per unit but whatever the cost it was a small price to pay for 8000 more hatchling Sea Turtles, somewhere around $2.00 US per turtle.

We have compiled our data from the 05/06 season and our save ratio was at 82%. That is commendable considering the save ratio four years ago was 0%, this site is for public information but if you would like to see our beach data just contact us.

We have begun the 06/07 nesting season and it has started with a bang! Many poachers are competeing with our three local patrollers and we have saved 11 out of 18 nests, this is a bit of a rough start but with monsoon conditions it is ideal for poachers to do thier work under the dark rainy skys. And our patrollers are out-numbered ten to one in Oct.  We are preparing our largest group of volunteers ever to converge on the nesting area in three weeks and reinforce our local patrollers with a great team of marine conservationists dedicated to saving every nest. We will patrol day and night to insure that our Punta Pargos Sea Turtles have a chance at surviving the generation old practice of poaching every nest. Many new faces have become part of our eco-arsenal, with backgrounds in not only marine turtle conservation but also education, the two elements that it will require to create the necessary change in attitude, poaching eggs is culturally imbedded in tropical countries, and will push the marine turtle into extinction if not addressed.

Together is still our key word and many businesses and individuals in Oregon have donated time, money, and materials to make our project a possibility. I would like to personally thank all of you, for the contributions you have made to our Punta Pargos Project. Without a wide support base we could never have come so far so fast. We will hatch out between six and eight thousand endangered turtles during the 06/07 season  with the support you have given STF.

Sea Turtles Forever!

Marc Ward

2007/2008 SEASON:

  We have secured 122 Marine turtles nests for the season as of 3/15/08, this is up from a total of 107 nests secured for last season. Our hatch recovery ratios are above 90% overall and we have lost only 20 nests to poachers for the season. The 07/08 season has been a complete success though a hard fought battle to say the least. The project was ran efficiently due in large part to our team leaders, Joey Beshore, David Ledbatter, And Jesse Gustafson. Added pressure from development and also illegal squatting made our job even more demanding but Team Alpha rose to the challenge and performed admirably. We were short handed this season but the team leaders stepped up to fill the many patrol spots that we needed covered, working double shifts often and even performing 5 hour lock-downs on beaches with extreme poaching problems. Moral was at a low point towards mid-season but Randall Arauz showed up on patrol for a night and lifted our moral. Randall is a good friend and collaborator of the project and having him on patrol was a great honor for Team Alpha, it lifted moral and we never lost it again through the hard ending-season weeks.

  The Lance Ferris Memorial Challenge also put more pressure on Team Alpha but gave us a new understanding of how bad the Marine Plastics Debris situation is becoming. Sorting 1000 pounds of Marine Plastics Debris was hard on the team but I only asked for volunteers and no-one was required to do any work on the Lance Ferris Challenge that was not willing to throw in thier free time to get the job done. We did get the job done and honored Lance and the great work that he has done, and we rose awareness along the way to Lance's efforts and also the situation we face dealing with MPD in our environment. I would like to thank Joey Beshore , David Ledbetter and Jesse Gustafson for thier incredible efforts above and beyond the norm on patrol this season, and I would also like to thank Tanya, Marie and Albert Martinez for thier exemplary work on the Lance Ferris Challenge.