Click the link below to shop and donate online or find the instructions if you prefer to mail us a check.
And we still have some 2025 shirts available at discount prices. These are only available through our online store or mail order. The Lighthouse does not have any 2025 shirts. shop, donate and adopt a nest here
Found a mother turtle laying a nest? A stranded or injured sea turtle and/or unattended hatchlings?
Call the HBTWP Stranding Team:
910-754-0766 | 24/7/365
Nesting turtles are frightened by lights and won't lay their eggs on a brightly lighted beach. Hatchlings will go to the lights rather than the ocean! Please help us preserve our marine life by keeping beachfront lighting off from May 1st until October 31st. learn more turtle facts
As recommended by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission, it is the policy of the HBTWP to NOT disclose the locations or potential hatch dates of active turtle nests on our beach.
A list of nest locations will NOT be published in newspapers, on this website or on other social media. Please do NOT call the emergency number or contact the Project Coordinator to ask about nests. This is for the safety of the turtles! learn more about turtle nesting
Current Nest Count |
False Crawls |
6 |
5 |
Total Known Eggs |
Hatchlings to Ocean |
650 |
posted: May 21, 2026, 9:57 AM
This morning, our Sea Turtle Patrol found a Loggerhead Sea Turtle nest on Holden Beach. We had 2 false crawls earlier this month, on 5/13 & 5/17. A false crawl is when a nesting female comes onto the beach to lay a nest but for some reason returns to the ocean without making a nest and depositing her eggs. Females will continue to lay nests through August, and hatchlings will emerge about 55-60 days after a nest is laid. Holden Beach Turtle Patrol nesting experiences in recent years: 2025 – First False Crawl 5/10/25 and First Nest 5/22/25 2024—First False...read more of this article.
posted: May 5, 2026, 12:45 PM
The sea turtle nesting season has begun in North Carolina and there are already 2 Leatherback Sea Turtle nests. Wow, how exciting for Atlantic Beach and Cape Lookout NS where they each have one Leatherback nest. The Leatherbacks typically begin their migration and nesting before the Loggerheads, but our Loggerheads won’t be far behind. Before we get too busy on our beach, let’s take a moment and meet the 2026 Board of Directors for the Holden Beach Turtle Watch Program Deva Tucker-President Steve McNeill- Program Coordinator & Permit Holder Barb Taylor- Secretary Laura Hager-Treasurer Jim Smith-Director-at-Large Good luck to our...read more of this article.
posted: April 29, 2026, 6:53 PM
We are proud to announce this year’s scholarship recipients for the Judith C. Bryan HBTWP Fellowship in Marine Biology. Judy Bryan started the Holden Beach Turtle Watch Program out of her garage on Holden Beach in 1989. Both fellowship winners are Marine Biology graduate students and researchers at UNCW, and they work directly with sea turtles. They are both second time winners and will share the $5000 scholarship award, again this year. They were featured in the Fall 2025 edition of UNCW Magazine. • Jamie Clark conducts research to develop and validate tools for determining the age of living, deceased,...read more of this article.
posted: April 6, 2026, 1:07 PM
Meet the 2026 Holden Beach Turtle Patrol Stranding Team.24/7/365 these folks are available to help a sick or injured turtle on Holden Beach. If you see a sea turtle in need of assistance, please call the stranding team at 910 -754- 0766. Please use this phone number for turtle EMERGENCIES only. We got out first stranding call of the 2026 season today. It was a Diamondback Terrapin. While they occasionally wander onto the beach, they are NOT sea turtles. In fact, they are the only turtles in North America that live exclusively in brackish water. When we receive a call...read more of this article.