Share and you'll help Mediterranean Marine Life Center raise more money.
The Mediterranean Marine Life Center plays a vital role in the protection of the endangered Mediterranean Loggerhead Sea Turtle, Caretta Caretta, on the island of Zakynthos. Since being founded in 1991 we have worked tirelessly to research, monitor, and protect the sea turtles of the island.
This information center has been designed to help inform visitors about the wildlife of the area with interesting and informative displays. It is built 100 meters from Gerakas Beach, a popular nesting beach for turtles.
Zakynthos is the main nesting area for sea turtles in the Mediterranean, making it incredibly important to conserve the landscape and wildlife. It is also one of the most visited islands in Greece. The influx of tourists and the island's growing dependence on tourism have put the loggerhead at real risk. A female loggerhead sea turtle may travel thousands of miles to nest her eggs on the same beach where she herself hatched as a baby. That's why it's essential to preserve nesting areas and keep them free of human intervention.
When you give to the Mediterranean Marine Life Center, your donated funds are used to run our year-round programs that support our mission of protecting the endangered Loggerhead sea turtle population on Zakynthos.
Your donation will make it possible for us to:
- Educate the thousands of visitors who visit Gerakas each day (with free admission to our information center to reach the most people possible)
- Collect turtle nesting data on Gerakas Beach
- Clean and monitor Gerakas Beach and the surrounding area
- Continue our Greek Tortoise breeding program, which is massively successful and has led to the release of over 120 tortoises since its inception
- Operate the only recycling program on Zakynthos
- Collect data to publish an annual report on human impact on Gerakas’s wildlife
- Continue to develop our erosion-intervention methods, such as our new sand-saving shower system
- Continue to develop alternatives to beachgoing to reduce human impact on Gerakas during nesting season, such as the eco-beach located above the snack bar next door
Donors be updated on our work throughout the season and be the first to hear about new projects we develop to support the turtles of Zakynthos and will receive a personalized certificate via email. Donations are tax-deductible in the United States.
It's thanks to individual donors that our work is possible, and we thank you in advance for choosing to support this beautiful island and its wildlife!
