The Holden Beach Turtle Watch, or Turtle Patrol as it is usually referred to, was founded in 1989 to monitor and protect the sea turtle population on Holden Beach. This all volunteer, nonprofit conservation organization operates under the authority of the NC Wildlife Resources Commission. The program currently has approximately 65 members. Learn more..

Baby Loggerhead Turtle

What we do!

Starting in May, volunteers begin a dawn patrol of the beach searching for turtle crawls and possible nests. Once a sea turtle crawl is found, a team of turtle patrol volunteers assembles at the crawl location to find the eggs. If the nest is in an unsafe location, the nest will be carefully moved to a safer area on the beach. The nest site is then covered with a protective grating and marked off with stakes, ribbon and a warning sign. For the next 50-70 days of incubation the nest will be monitored for signs of an impending hatching. At that time, turtle patrol members will start a nightly watch on the nest until all of the hatchlings are released. The nest is then opened and an inventory is taken to account for any unhatched or non-fertile egg and insure that all live babies make it to the ocean. This process is repeated with each and every nest. The season ends in October when the last nest hatches.

Call our 24/7 Stranding Team at
910- 754-0766

Please only call this number for turtle emergencies!

Found a mother laying a nest? A stranded or injured sea turtle and/or unattended hatchlings? Call the HBTP Stranding Team at: 910-754-0766

This refrigerator magnet should be in every beach front home. If not contact your rental agent or any turtle patrol member you see on the beach.

T-Shirts now available by mail!

Even if you can't make it to Holden Beach this summer, you can own this year’s HBTP Shirt. The shirts are now available by mail.

Send your name, address, shirt size and check (sorry, we can't do credit cards) to:

Holden Beach Turtle Patrol
PO Box 487
Supply, NC 28462

New shirt prices and styles—we now have long sleeve shirts and hats:

Short sleeve
Youth $15
Adults S-XL $17
2X and 3X $20

Long Sleeve
S-XL $22
2XL and 3XL $25

HBTP hats--$20

Shipping and Handling
1 shirt $8
2-7 shirts $13
8+ shirts $18

Make checks payable to HBTP

For questions about shirts send us an email

The Statistics For 2019
Current Nest Count	False Crawls
105	100 (-5)
Total Known Eggs	Total Baby Turtles to Ocean
10552	7023 +++

Most Recent Updates & News:

Good news!

posted: September 13, 2019, 11:27 AM

Last night there was a beautiful sunset. Photos shared by volunteers watching nests. Good news. One of the nests lost in the hurricane was found by a group of mighty members with shovels! This was nest #104 and the last nest laid this summer on our beach. It has been ...click to read more of this news article.

We Dig Turtles

posted: September 9, 2019, 9:18 AM

Turtle Patrol members have been back in the beach! Saturday our coordinator rode the atv early morning and reported that several nests and equipment were completely GONE after hurricane Dorian passed our shore. He also reported that lots of sand had been deposited on most of the remaining nests. Yesterday ...click to read more of this news article.

Waiting for Hurricane Dorian

posted: September 4, 2019, 7:12 AM

Holden Beach is under a mandatory evacuation. Turtle Patrol volunteers will not be on the beach until after the storm has passed and it is considered safe to return to the island. As of Monday (September 2) night we had 14 nests left on the beach. There are also three ...click to read more of this news article.

As recommended by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission, it is the policy of the HBTP to NOT disclose the locations or potential hatch dates of active turtle nests on our beach. A listing of nest locations will NOT be published in newspapers, on this website or on other social media. Please don’t call the emergency number or contact the webmaster to ask about nests. This is for the safety of the turtles!

*** You can view Holden Beach Turtle Watch Program Historical Data here. ***

We are excited to provide video footage of a turtle nest hatching. There are 6 six video clips available for your viewing. We hope you enjoy...
Click here to visit 'The Turtle Patrol Cinema'.

The Town of Holden Beach is located midway between Wilmington, North Carolina and Myrtle Beach, South Carolina -- about 40 minutes driving from each. The Town is situated on an Atlantic coastal barrier island, facing south onto the Long Bay region of Brunswick County. I-95 from the north and south, I-40 from the west and US-17 south from Wilmington or north from Myrtle Beach leads to Holden Beach -- approximately 3 hours from Raleigh, or 4 hours from Charlotte or Greensboro, or 7 hours from Asheville. For more map detail of Brunswick County, go to Brunswick Islands, and then click on "Maps".

Like: Town of Holden Beach Facebook page for turtle updates.

Visit the Town of Holden Beach web site

Thank you for buying our t-shirts at turtle talk and at Lighthouse Gifts. This is how we make money to finance the Holden Beach Turtle Watch Program (like buying a new 4 wheel drive ATV). Thank all of you who let us use your walkways and visited with us on the beach night after night. You will never know how much your support and friendship on the beach means to all of us.

If you would like to contact us or make a donation, please write to us at:

Holden Beach Turtle Patrol
PO Box 487
Supply N.C. 28462