A beautiful tropical day greeted us as we approached the dramatic island of Fernando de Noronha. Most of the island and some of the surrounding waters are protected as a national park. A small community of people lives on the island, and they are involved mostly in the small amount of tourist activity.
In the afternoon we divided into two groups. Half of our guests went on local boats to cruise around the north side of the island, looking at seabirds and observing the resident population of spinner dolphins. The other half of our group traveled in the only transportation on the island, dune buggies. The vehicles took us to the other side of the island, where there is a very important conservation project to protect the sea turtles that feed around the island and nest on some of the beaches.
We learned about the project from its directors and some of the local people involved. Two hawksbill turtles were gently brought ashore, measured, weighed and marked, then gently returned to the sea.
