Patara Caretta Caretta

Patara awaits to be strolled, on the Lycian part of Turkey, rests a beach of 18 kilometers where Caretta Carettas ("loggerhead" turtles) lay their eggs.

Every year, in spring, thousands of female Caretta Carettas arrive at this "delivery beach" to secure their genes beneath the sand. About two months later, hatchings leave their incubation spot under the sand. They dig out their ways to the surface, preferably at night, when darkness keeps them safe from predators, and crawl towards the horizon, using the guidance of the moonlight and starlight reflected by the water to reach the waves.

Their genders are determined by the temperature. Eggs kept at a constant incubating temperature of 32°C become females; at 28°C they become males!

The Caretta Carettas have been on this planet assumbly for over 100 million years! Young Homo Sapiens versus old Caretta Caretta. The oldest finding from the ancient city of Patara (until 2015) is a figurine from 3000 BC. Homo Sapiens record their own history for some thousands of years, while Caretta Carettas lay eggs for millions of years; they are indeed historical.

Homo Sapiens take showers or go swimming if possible; male Caretta Carettas never get out of the water and females do only to lay eggs.

Patara had once used to be home to Homo Sapiens; Caretta Carettas never stopped using its beach to breed and to kick-off their world tour there.

Caretta Carettas don't have democracy and a parliament; some Homo Sapiens say they want democracy and parliaments (among billions of other good things).

Homo Sapiens kill millions of their own kind and heavily contribute in the extinction of any other species from flies to elephants; Caretta Carettas are among them and don't fight back. They look neither for democracy nor parliaments. They simply keep surviving all cruelty by the Homo Sapiens.

Caretta Carettas eat whenever they are hungry; they don't order in, take away or cook.

Caretta Carettas are extincting; Homo Sapiens are overpopulating.

You can be one of the many volunteers at Patara and witness the female Caretta Carettas laying their eggs in the spring... This is a tremendous survival story and it's repeating its miracle every year on a beach just a few steps away from the oldest parliament building in the world.