Sea Turtles of HHI

About Sea Turtles

Hilton Head Island’s 14 miles of wide, sandy beaches aren’t just a draw for visitors — they’re a critical nesting ground for some of the ocean’s oldest and most resilient creatures. Every year from May through October, sea turtles return to our shores to build nests, lay eggs, and continue a cycle that has played out for more than 100 million years. Five species nest along the Southeastern coast, and Hilton Head has seen loggerheads, leatherbacks, green sea turtles, hawksbills, and the critically endangered Kemp’s ridley — a Kemp’s ridley nest hatched here just this summer!

In 2025, sea turtles laid 237 nests on Hilton Head Island. A single female may nest two to eight times in a season, laying around 120 eggs each time. Those hatchlings rely on the natural light of the moon to find their way from nest to ocean — which means what happens on our beaches and in our beachfront buildings during nesting season genuinely matters.

Sea turtles are listed as threatened or endangered species under both federal law and the laws of the state of South Carolina. Hilton Head takes that seriously. Sea Turtle Patrol HHI is the only state-permitted program monitoring nests and hatchlings on HHI’s beaches, and there’s plenty of room for all of us to help.

How to Help

A few simple habits during nesting season (May–October) make a real difference:

• Turn off or redirect outdoor lights visible from the beach after 10 PM
• Close blinds and drapes on beachfront-facing windows after 10 PM
• Fill in holes and flatten sandcastles before leaving the beach — both can trap or disorient hatchlings
• Remove all beach gear overnight — chairs, umbrellas, and toys left on the sand can block or injure nesting turtles and their young
• Never disturb a nest, a nesting turtle, or a hatchling (this goes for your dog too!)

To report a dead, injured, or harassed sea turtle, contact SCDNR at 1-800-922-5431.

Want to go deeper? Island Life HH has a thorough guide to sea turtles on Hilton Head Island worth bookmarking.

Events

Sea Turtle Patrol HHI

Website: Sea Turtle Patrol HHI · Instagram: @hhiseaturtle · HQ: 144 Arrow Road, Hilton Head Island

Monday Turtle Talks

Educational presentations about sea turtles and the Hilton Head coastal ecosystem. Open to all ages, free, no registration required.

📍 Lowcountry Celebration Park — 94 Pope Ave, Hilton Head Island
📅 Mondays through summer season · 7:30-9:00PM

Put the Beach to Bed

Volunteers help prepare the beach for nesting turtles — filling holes, flattening sandcastles, clearing trash. No registration required. All ages welcome. Supplies provided. Rain or shine.

Turtle Trot 5K

Register: turtletrot5k.com

2026 Race Dates: May 27 · June 3, 10, 17, 24 · July 1, 8, 15, 22, 29 · August 5, 12 · November 26

Race day: Packet pickup 7:00 AM · Closes 7:45 AM · Announcements 7:55 AM · Race starts 8:00 AM

Keep the Broad Creek Clean Water Festival

Free, family-friendly community event celebrating Broad Creek and the local waterway ecosystem.

📍 Shelter Cove Community Park — 39 Shelter Cove Lane, Hilton Head Island
📅 July 21, 2026 · 5:00–7:00 PM

Turtle Trackers HHI

Website: turtletrackershhi.org

Sea Turtle Learning Stations

Turtle Trackers volunteers staff educational displays about sea turtles and beach etiquette at two locations during nesting season.

Salty Dog Café
📍 232 South Sea Pines Drive (Sea Pines — gate fee applies)
📅 Sundays · 2:00–6:00 PM

Harbour Town
📍 149 Lighthouse Road (Sea Pines — gate fee applies)
📅 Tuesdays, 5:30–7:30 PM · Switching to Thursdays in August

Sea Pines Dolphin Dash 5K

Register: Dolphin Dash

Turtle Trackers volunteers staff this weekly 5K — running a learning station at registration, turnarounds, the water station, and the finish line. Registration required.

📍 Sea Pines Beach Club — 87 North Sea Pines Drive (gate fee applies)
📅 Thursdays · 7:15–9:30 AM

Beach Borrow Bins

A Sea Turtle Patrol HHI program — and one of our favorite ideas on the island.

Beach Toy Borrow Bins are stocked with gently used buckets, shovels, and beach toys for families to borrow for the day. Take what you need, and return it — or drop it at any bin — before you leave. It saves a trip to the store, keeps money in your pocket, and means more time actually on the beach. It also keeps single-use plastic beach gear out of the landfill — and off the beach overnight, where it can block or injure nesting turtles.

Bins are located at 12 beach access points across the island:

Alder Lane · Burke’s · Coligny · Dreissen · Dunes House · Fish Haul · Folly · Islanders · Omni · Palmetto Dunes North · Sea Pines Beach Club · Westin

Heading home? Stop by the STPHHI headquarters at 144 Arrow Road to donate toys before you leave the island.

Adopt a Sea Turtle Nest

The Coastal Discovery Museum offers an Adopt-A-Nest program that lets you support loggerhead conservation right here on HHI’s beaches. When you adopt a nest, you receive a certificate of adoption, a unique nest number, seasonal updates throughout the May–October nesting season, and end-of-season data directly from SCDNR about your specific nest.

A meaningful gift — and a direct way to support local sea turtle protection.

Adopt a nest through the Coastal Discovery Museum →

What About Daufuskie Island?

Website: Daufuskie Turtle Protection

Daufuskie Island has its own dedicated turtle protection volunteers — the Daufuskie Island Turtle Protection group monitors nesting activity throughout the season and works hard to protect both turtles and their nests. Through July 19, 2026, they’ve already recorded 119 nests on the island — a new record.

Public programming isn’t currently listed on their site, but if you’re on Daufuskie during nesting season, you can report a sea turtle sighting or disturbance directly to SCDNR, or contact the local patrol:

Nancy Owens: (843) 298-1395
Monica Ferguson: (843) 298-6664