ARCHELON
The Sea Turtle Directory
Country: Greece
Organization / Project Name: ARCHELON/ Lakonikos Bay
Website: https://archelon.gr/
Email: info@archelon.gr
Description: Lakonikos Bay is located on the southeastern side of the Peloponnese and is a marine area where, besides Caretta, the green turtle (Chelonia mydas) is also often found. The beaches of Mavrovouni, Valtaki, Selinitsa, Vathi, in the western part of the bay, as well as the 15km beach of Evrotas, host an average of 200 nests every year. Some beaches receive a lot of visitors during the summer months and their physical condition has been degraded, so continuous protection actions are required. The estuary of the river Evrotas is a place of rest, feeding and breeding for many bird species and the dune belt hosts the sea daffodil (Pancratium maritimum). All nesting beaches in Lakonikos Bay have been included in the European Natura 2000 site network under the code GR2540003 "EKVOLES EVROTA, PERIOCHI VRONTAMA KAI THALASSIA PERIOCHI LAKONIKOU KOLPOU". You can meet the ARCHELON volunteers and find out more about sea turtles at the Valtaki, Selinitsa, Mavrovouni and Vathy beaches (Lakonia). More than 500 volunteers from all over the world help us protect sea turtles in Greece every year. In 2022, volunteers in Lakonikos Bay protected approximately 428 sea turtle nests and informed approximately 3,000 visitors about sea turtle reproduction. ARCHELON- the Sea Turtle Protection Society of Greece was founded in 1983 and is a non-profit Association active all over Greece. All of ARCHELON activities in the Peloponnese, which include monitoring and protecting the reproduction of sea turtles, and raising public awareness, are performed in close collaboration with the local authorities.
Species of focus: Loggerheads (Caretta caretta)
Volunteer program: Yes
Tourist activities (Y/N): Yes
Primary Areas of Work: Stranding response, Community development, Environmental education/community outreach, Nesting beach monitoring, Policy, Satellite telemetry, Beach protection
Facebook Profile: https://www.facebook.com/archelon.gr
Instagram Profile: https://www.instagram.com/archelon_greece/