Kelonia

If you're a turtle fan, you'll love this!

Today I decided to visit Kelonia, the turtle sanctuary and museum located in Saint Leu. It's pretty easy to get to since it's on the main road and close to many bus links and tickets weren't too pricey which made it acceptable for me to have a freshly squeezed juice at the bar just outside the entrance.

Throughout the visit, I learnt some fun facts about turtles whilst observing them in their natural and reconstituted habitats including viewing feeding time in their 500,000 litre tank. But Kelonia also specialises in research on migration and population of turtles as well as providing a clinic for ill or injured turtles.

It was interesting to learn more about the different species of turtle along with how they live and the threats they face.

The different species of turtle included:

Green Turtle

Hawksbill Sea Turtle

Olive Ridley Turtle

Loggerhead Turtle

Turtle Facts:

- Turtles can lay between 70 and 190 eggs depending on the species!

- The temperature of the sand where the turtles nest determine the sex of the turtle: below 30ºC is predominately male and above 30ºC is predominately female.

- Though sea turtles spend most of their lives in the water, they lay their eggs on land.

- Turtles return to the same nesting grounds at which they were born.

- Green sea turtles can stay under water for as long as 5 hours.

- Turtles undergo long migrations, some as far as 1400 miles.

- They can live up to 80 years.

#LaRéunion