By Eric DouglasJayne and Marie, and their new friends Javier and Monique, have come to the ocean research centre on Nag’s Head, North Carolina to help Jayne and Marie’s parents, Ann and Nathan, care for an injured sea turtle brought in by boaters.“Kids, why don’t you come over here out of the way? You can watch, but let your mom and the others do their jobs to take care of the turtle,” Nathan, the girls’ dad, said. He moved the kids to the wall of the exam room where they could still see.“What kind of turtle is it, Dad?” Marie asked as she and the others watched every move their and Javier’s moms made.“That’s a loggerhead turtle, honey. There are a lot of nesting areas for turtles like that on the beaches around here,” he explained.“I’m not sure by looking at it, but it’s probably a female. They lay their eggs around here.”“Do you think she got her eggs laid before she got hurt?” Jayne asked, concern filling her face.“Your mom can probably answer that question. She’ll be able to tell if the turtle is still carrying her eggs or not,” he said. “Loggerheads usually lay three to five nests during the summer, with about 100 eggs in each nest. Since this is the end of the nesting season, these eggs would probably have been her last.”“If they lay so many eggs each year, why are we worried about one turtle? There should be millions of them,” Javier asked, looking at Nathan in confusion. “I mean, I don’t want the turtle to be hurt, but Mom said they’re endangered. How can that be?”“That’s a very good question, Javier,” Nathan said, “but sea turtles don’t lay eggs every year — they only make nests every two or three years. And out of those nests only one in 1,000 hatchlings grows up to become an adult sea turtle. A lot of turtles get killed by fishing nets, and in some countries, people still eat turtle eggs and hunt adult turtles for food. Also, when people build houses and stores and hotels on beaches the mother turtles don’t have anywhere to make their nests. There are very few sea turtles left in the oceans now. That’s why it’s against the law to hurt a sea turtle.”The kids all stopped talking to watch as Ann cut away some fishing line. It had caused deep cuts in the turtle’s skin. She gave it a shot to keep it from getting sick and covered the wound. When she finished her examination, the doctor and the volunteers moved the turtle into a holding tank so it could get better.“Mom, do you think the turtle is going to be okay?” Jayne asked as her mother walked back toward the kids.“I hope so. The cuts are pretty bad, but I’ve seen worse. She could still swim some, but I’m betting the boaters found her because she was too weak to swim away,” Jayne’s mother said. “We’ll put her in one of the special holding tanks in the back. She’ll be able to swim around a little, and we’ll nurse her back to health. You guys can help me feed her and keep an eye on her. Then, when she is ready, we’ll release her back into the ocean.”“Was she able to lay her eggs?” Monique asked. “Will her babies have a chance to grow up?”“That’s the way it looks. She isn’t carrying any more eggs and she is showing all the signs that she just laid them. She was probably hurting, but knew she had to lay her eggs to give her babies a chance,” Mom explained. “She risked her life and it probably hurt, but that’s what mommies do for their babies. I’m a little concerned, though. Since she was hurting so bad, she might not have been able to dig out a good nest and cover it up properly. She might not have gotten the eggs protected. If that’s the case, they may already be gone.”“Why would the eggs be gone, Dad?” Marie asked, turning to her father.“Probably birds or other animals would have eaten them,” he said.SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT1. What is wrong with the injured sea turtle? Do you think it will survive?2. How did the mother sea turtle act like all mommies do with their babies?3. What does it mean that sea turtles are labelled endangered?4. What facts about loggerhead turtles have you learned from this chapter?5. Javier’s question is a good one. Why should we worry about one turtle since they lay many eggs each year?NEXT WEEK: CHOOSING A NAME