By David Kaufman
The South Florida region participates in one of the most beautiful seasonal cycles, the annual birth of sea turtles. Tiny, precious and endlessly adorable, the turtle hatchlings emerge from the sand between April 1 and October 31 every year as they gently make their way into the awaiting Atlantic. And Acqualina forms an ideal location to experience this magic firsthand. Some 600 unique turtle nesting sites can be found in the greater Miami metropolitan area. Heavily protected by both local laws, the nests can contain up to hundreds of eggs from which the hatchlings emerge. Guests wishing to witness this reptilian procession first-hand should prepare for late-night visits to active nests to witness these beautiful forces of nature under the stars and moon. There is a lot to take in – tiny baby turtles making their way to the Ocean as well as their fully-grown turtle mothers nesting and laying eggs. For folks eager to learn even more about these annual turtle rights-of-passage, one of the nation’s leading sea turtle learning institutions is the Miami-Dade County Sea Turtle Conservation Program.