Discoveries Costa Rica: Sea Turtles

As niche subjects go, the care and salvaging of turtle eggs and hatchlings (i.e., newborn turtles) on the Pacific Ocean coast of Costa Rica sounds, well, pretty esoteric. But this engaging, illuminating documentary easily catches a viewer up in the excitement of seeing nature take its course. Adult female turtles (several turtle species coexist in Costa Rica) make their way from sea to sand, digging holes on shores where they can lay their eggs and cover over their unhatched babies to incubate. Eventually, the little ones break out and skitter to the water, where they begin a lifespan of up to 60 years. All well and good, yes? Not quite. We see armies of animal predators hanging out on the beach, awaiting the arrival of tasty infants and making the latter's run of 20 or so feet to the Pacific a treacherous gamble. Then, of course, there are human poachers to contend with (we don't see any, but we hear about them). This "Discoveries" presentation largely focuses on various programs designed by passionate scientists and volunteers to reduce the carnage, allowing dwindling numbers of sea turtles to grow. We see these good folks (among them Americans who spend part of their winters coming down to help) removing garbage and debris from several beaches, exhuming birth pits that didn't work out (removing dead hatchlings and broken eggs, though occasionally finding a lone survivor), and chasing predators away. The involvement of surrounding communities is interesting, with local people willing to help boost the turtle population in exchange for harvesting some of the eggs for cooking. By the end of this film, one wants to head down there to assist with turtle conservation. Strongly recommended. Aud: Km E, I, J, H, C, P. (T. Keogh)