Photo Credit: Lindsey Koehler
WHO WE ARE
Caswell Beach Turtle Watch is a private non-profit staffed solely by volunteers from the community. The organization and its volunteers are supervised by authorized program leaders who are designated permittees of the NC Wildlife Resources Commission.
OUR PURPOSE
The purpose of Caswell Beach Turtle Watch is to protect threatened and endangered sea turtles that lay their eggs on Caswell Beach. Efforts include community education, and monitoring and reporting on sea turtle nesting and hatch activities relying on the public’s help.
NEST ADOPTION
You can “Adopt-a-Nest” to help support the efforts of Caswell Beach Turtle Watch in their nest monitoring activities. When you adopt a nest, you receive a Certificate of Adoption, nest photos, and updates about your nest throughout the season.
Please be advised that all Caswell Beach Turtle Watch volunteers carry and wear a NCWRC Permit Badge. Official volunteers also must display Caswell Beach Parking Permits in parked vehicles at all times while performing sea turtle duties. Don’t hesitate to ask to see a badge if you are uncertain who you are speaking with! Also, see our UPDATED Sea Turtle Guidelines from NCWRC.
Video Highlights
2026 Turtle Data
2026 Nests
2026 False Crawls
2026 Volunteer Hours
2026 Hatched Eggs
Our Latest Updates
- What False Crawls Tell Us About Mama Sea TurtlesIf you haven’t heard the term “false crawl” in relation to sea turtle nesting, it is an important sign of the struggles a mama sea turtle encounters when trying to find a nesting site. As Read More
- Caswell Beach Replenishment Is Underway!Caswell Beach Turtle Watch is happy to share that the beach replenishment project has begun! If you followed us last seaon, you know that our turtle nests and our beaches overall were significantly impacted by Read More
- Caswell Beach Turtle Watch 2025 Season Highlights**This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 25ST03). Please consider donating to our efforts as we build up our necessary resources for the season.You Read More
- Remaining Sea Turtle Nests at Caswell Beach Have Hatched!It’s a wrap for the 2025 Sea Turtle Seaon at Caswell Beach! We are grateful our few remaining nests, many washed over by Hurricane Erin, had some time to incubate, hatch and be inventoried before Read More
- Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Featured in Southport OKI MagazineWe are happy to share that we have been featured in Southport OKI magazine, along with our friends at Oak Island Sea Turtle Protection. Thanks to the magazine for spending so much time with us Read More