Caught on Webcam: Baby Turtles Gone Wild

Live streaming webcam catches hatchlings up close

Typically, if you wanted to witness the miracle of life, turtle-style that is, you'd have to head to the beach at dusk and with a pair of binoculars, and wait and hope.

However, times have changed. Now you can watch adorable, baby loggerhead turtles make their initial journey to the ocean via webcam.

The turtle-friendly cameras in the Florida Keys are equipped with infrared technology to record video while not disturbing the baby turtles.

For about two weeks, live-streaming webcams have been focused on three different loggerhead nests that were expected to hatch at different times. The video first appeared on the Florida Keys Website on Tuesday and viewers were mesmerized by what they witnessed from the comfort of their own homes.

"I watched the turtles hatch in Nest #3 last night," wrote Barbara LaGrossa of Winter Park, Fla. "It was awesome! Called my grandchildren and they too were able to see them hatch!!!"

On evenings from early spring through early fall, turtles in the Keys come ashore to dig nests and lay eggs. The turtles then cover up their eggs with sand and return to the ocean. It’s not until two months later that the turtle hatchlings making their way out to the sea.

Bon voyage hatchlings!

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