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ETV's "The Turtle Ladies of Charleston County" Profiles Impassioned Group

Thursday, June 5 at 9 p.m.

For Immediate Release
May 22, 2008

Columbia, SC...From May to August, the beaches of Charleston County become the nesting grounds for a group that returns here year after year after year. Late into the night and early each morning, they make their way onto the beaches driven by the primordial instinct of survival of the species.  But it isn't their own species they are helping survive.

The Turtle Ladies of Charleston County, a new documentary that is part of ETV's award-winning Carolina Stories series, provides a glimpse into the world of the women (and a few men) who spend countless hours each year protecting the sea turtle population along South Carolina's coast.  Airing on Thursday, June 5 at 9 p.m., the program features staff from the SC Aquarium's Sea Turtle Rescue Hospital, the SC Dept. of Natural Resources (DNR) and members of three "turtle teams," all of whom feel a deep connection to this endangered species.

From daily pre-dawn beach patrols looking after the nests, to performing an ultrasound on "DeBordieu," a 70-year-old female too exhausted to make it back to the ocean after laying her eggs, the hour-long documentary follows these impassioned individuals, as they go to great lengths to save the sea's gentle giants.

"There's just a mystique about them," said Mary Pringle, the project leader of the Island Turtle Team, who added that the efforts of volunteers such as herself and her team have helped raise the turtles' chances of survival "ten-fold"--an encouraging statistic considering that even with their help, only an estimated one in 1,000 hatchlings will reach adulthood.

"What an honor it is to be allowed to interact with such an ancient, mysterious and wonderful thing as a loggerhead turtle. My husband says that, if I could, I would sit on all the nests and incubate them myself," Pringle said.

Which isn't too far from how she and her team spend many of their summer nights: Huddled around a nest and using a microphone and speaker to listen for the unmistakable "scratching" of the hatchlings as, with a frenzy of flippers, they claw their way to the surface, climbing over each other in what is appropriately called a "boil."

The documentary also spends time with the turtle-hospital-staff, as they nurse sick adult males back to health.  Named after the place where they were rescued, the staff care for Cape Romain, Bull, Wadmalaw, and several others, providing a unique and rare opportunity to learn more about these prehistoric creatures and the steps needed to ensure they will continue to return to South Carolina's beaches --just as they've done since the time of the dinosaurs.

BY THE NUMBERS:

South Carolina ETV is the state's public educational broadcasting network with 11 television and eight radio transmitters, and a multi-media educational system in more than 2,500 schools, colleges, businesses and government agencies. Using television, radio and the web, SCETV's mission is to enrich lives by educating children, informing and connecting citizens, celebrating our culture and environment and instilling the joy of learning.

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For more information, contact Rob Schaller at (803) 737-6556 or rschaller@scetv.org.