BEACH BABY BOOM!

The pitter-patter of tiny flippers could be heard on the beach in the wee hours of Saturday morning. At around 3 a.m., 92 precious little packages made their way to the ocean for the first time.

They are newly hatched Kemp's Ridley sea turtles, the most endangered of all the sea turtles. But these particular babies were special in that their injured mother was the first turtle to come ashore on South Padre Island to nest this season, and had to be euthanized.

During her journey to land, turtle observers believe she was struck by a boat, leaving her with devastating injuries. But before she was euthanized, she made to the beach where she laid 03 eggs.

Because she was injured so badly, the staff at Sea Turtle Inc. has been very interested in this first nest, wondering how many of the eggs would hatch. Saturday morning they got the answer when all but 11 of the eggs produced hatchlings that emerged from the nest.

But the day was just beginning for this staff of turtle crusaders. At 7 a.m. they arrived back at the beach for another release. During the night three more nests had hatched and the babies were ready to take their first swim.

This time when the staff arrived they were greeted by a crowd of approximately 300 people. Word had gotten out there might be a release and the public came to see the new arrivals.

Jason Miller, his wife Melissa and their 8-year-old son Noah are from Conroe in East Texas. They were visiting the Island for summer vacation.

"We read in the paper there might be a release today," Miller said. "So we stayed an extra day just to see it."

The staff was surprised by the public response.

"It's not usually this big," zoologist Adrienne McCracken said. "This is a really good turnout."

Present at the release was Gloria Ridolfi. It was a special day for her because she had "adopted" one of the nests and her foster hatchlings were being released.

"This is very exciting," Ridolfi said. "Anything we can do to preserve the turtles is very important. To me it's like letting your child go out into the world. It's a very emotional thing."

Nests are still available for adoption at Sea Turtle Inc. Cost is $1 per egg or $100 for a full nest. Foster parents are invited to the release off their hatchlings and get a more personal experience than the general public.

The funds raised from adoption are used to continue the conservation efforts of endangered sea turtles on the Island and Boca Chica Beach. For more information call 956-761-4511 or visit www.seaturtleinc.org.

All total 279 babies were released on Saturday. Sea Turtle Inc curator Jeff George was encouraged by this early success.

"All four nests have had excellent numbers," he said. "Nests two, three and four have had a 90 percent or better hatch rate."

The staff is expecting more releases in the coming days. Releases are open to the public and take place at County Beach Access No. 4. For more information call Sea Turtle Inc.

The female turtles released today that survive will return to the Island in 12 to 13 years to lay their first eggs.