Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The turtle farm displays the life cycle of the green sea turtle from birth
through breeding stage. A nursery shows where the eggs, which are laid by
the big breeder turtles on a sand beach, are incubated. The hatchlings live
in tanks and are fed high-protein pellets similar in appearance to dog food.
This diet accounts for the rapid growth of the farm's turtles compared to
their relatives in the wild.
The self-guided tour of the turtle farm takes you past many tanks filled
with turtles in various life stages. A special tank contains turtles that you
may pick up and hold, an excellent photo opportunity. Reach down and
clutch the turtle's body just behind his front flippers. He'll flip and flap
around, trying to swim away in mid-air, unless you hold him vertically.
The farm is also home to several other turtle displays.
Hawksbill turtle
(
Eretmochelys imbricata
). With a narrow,
sharply serrated carapace and a bird-like bill, the hawksbill
turtle is easy to identify. Specimens range from 90 to 180
pounds.
Kemp's Ridley sea turtle
(
Lepidochelys kempii
). The most
endangered of the sea turtles, these are being raised at the
farm for future release into the wild.
Loggerhead turtle
(
Caretta caretta
). Found off the Florida,
Georgia, and Carolina coasts, these weighty (200 to 350 pounds)
turtles have large heads that give them their name.
The turtle farm also recognizes the land residents of the Cayman Islands
in several exhibit areas. Look for the agouti (
Dasyprocta
) or the Cayman
“rabbit” in one area. These rodents, found in the eastern districts of Grand
Cayman, have long, thin legs, hoof-like claws, with three toes on their hind
feet and five toes on the forefeet. Once a food source, today the rodents are
rarely spotted. Nearby, another display area houses the American croco-
dile. Early verbal records speak of sightings of this reptile (
Cocodylus
acutus
), which reaches 20 feet in length, in Grand Cayman and Little
Cayman; recent archaeological finds have proven this claim.
Admission is US $6 for adults, US $3 for children six to 12 (under six free).
The farm is open daily 8:30 am to 5 pm. Allow about 45 minutes at the
farm, which makes an excellent rainy day distraction.
Hell:
East of the turtle farm lies an attraction that is pure Hell. This oddly
named place is actually a community named Hell, a moniker derived from
the time an English commissioner went hunting in the area, shot at a bird,
missed, and said, “Oh, hell.” The name must have seemed appropriate for
the devilishly pointed rocks near town, a bed of limestone and dolomite
that, through millions of years, have eroded into a crusty, pocked forma-
tion locally called ironshore.
