Loggerhead Marinelife Center helping treat, protect sea turtles

Click here for updates on this story

    JUNO BEACH, Florida (WPTV) — When area residents mention the town of Juno Beach, many people think of the Loggerhead Marinelife Center.

Dr. Justin Perrault, the vice president of research at the center, says being able to work at the center is a “dream job.”

“I’m so lucky to be here,” Perrault said.

Veterinarians and volunteers at Loggerhead Marinelife Center make it their mission to protect and rehabilitate beloved sea turtles.

“Justin, how many tanks do we have here at the center?” WPTV reporter Kate Wentzel asked Perrault.

“We have over 20 tanks,” Perrault replied. “Sometimes those tanks can be divided in case we are over capacity … so we can treat dozens of turtles at a time.”

From March to October, tens of thousands of sea turtles travel to Palm Beach County each year to lay their eggs on our sandy beaches.

There are two Florida beaches — located in Melbourne and Juno Beach — that are home to many of the state’s turtle nests.

“We have probably the capacity to care for more sea turtles or as many sea turtles as any other place on the planet,” Perrault said.

That’s no small task.

“It truly is a miracle,” he said. “These baby sea turtles have a very tough 24 hours when they are born.”

The hatchlings have to swim about 5 to 10 miles out into the Sargasso Sea — a safe environment where they can grow and continue to thrive.

Whether it’s a broken shell or an illness, there are four certified veterinary technicians available at the Loggerhead Marinelife Center to treat injured turtles.

On the day that WPTV was visiting the center, Marika Webber, a certified veterinary technician, was busy treating a very sick green turtle named Fritz who was fighting a virus.

“We found out they are very anemic,” Webber said. “They also suffer from a virus. … They grow these tumors on them which can really cause a lot of health issues for them.”

She said returning sea turtles like Fritz to the sea is their goal.

“What we all want to see is them back in the wild,” Webber said. “That moment when you get to release them is special.”

Whether you are a Floridian or just a visitor, getting the chance to see these sweet sea creatures at the facility is second to none.

“We have about over 300,000 guests every year that come here from all over the nation, in the world. We were recently voted the nation’s best free attraction. We beat out a lot of really big names on the list,” Perrault said.

The most memorable moment is watching a rehabilitated turtle return home to the sea. They receives substantial love and care at the center, but we all know there’s no place like home.

Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.