View Full Version : Happy's Big Adventure
Tom Smedley
July 7th, 2005, 12:44 PM
Sometimes you get to feeling down and when you need a lift in the worst way you see something that makes you smile all over. Hardly any activity in the ocean brings more squeals and joy than the sighting of a sea turtle. You want to get close and watch the magnificence and grace as long as possible. Sea turtles are, well, just wonderful creatures.
On June 29 at 9:45 in the morning a turtle dubbed Happy broke through an eggshell and headed for the sea. Turtle experts checked her out and equipped her with a radio transponder. Happy made her way to the ocean just nine days after my own birthday. Almost immediately she got the travel groove and headed north. She has been averaging 45 kilometers each day and is presently 375 kilometers from her origin still going strong. We’re sure she has a destination in mind but only she and Mother Nature know for sure where that will be.
In 2003 two female Hawksbills were tracked. Nautila and Schillie also headed north riding their natural instinct to distant homes. Nautila’s destination turned out to be the Navidad Banks and Schillie picked Mona Island near Puerto Rico.
Travel on little Happy. The world is watching and we hope so much to see you in person one day in a place with palm trees, sand, sun, and lush coral.
HooAh!
Rick Murchison
July 7th, 2005, 12:55 PM
Perhaps someday we'll see Happy again... with luck for an encounter like this one (http://www.blackbeard-cruises.com/mov/Loggerhead_0001.wmv) :)
Rick
Drewpy
July 7th, 2005, 01:35 PM
Best of luck Happy!!
Great video Rick! Way cool-thanks for sharing! ;)
Tom Smedley
July 7th, 2005, 05:29 PM
Everytime I see that video I love it more. Thanks Rick
The Aviator
July 8th, 2005, 03:22 PM
How refreshing to see a positive thing about man's interaction with sea creatures instead of the usual complaints.
Thanks Tom.
hh
jpedwards
July 9th, 2005, 10:32 AM
Awesome vid Rick. Where did you take it? I gotta get one of those integrated BP's ;)
Corigan
July 9th, 2005, 10:38 AM
I hope we see lucky again too! I wonder where she'll end up.
Awesome video Rick. I love how the loggerhead buzzes you to investigate closer. Great stuff!
Matt
Tom Smedley
July 9th, 2005, 12:00 PM
I thought I had said so but didn't. Happy hatched on Klein Bonaire and was tagged by the Turtle Conservancy. She is being sponsored by the Rotterdam Zoo.
Rick Murchison
July 11th, 2005, 10:32 AM
Awesome vid Rick. Where did you take it? I gotta get one of those integrated BP's ;)
Why thank you...
Taken near Bimini, at "Bull Run" in October 2003 - diving from Blackbeards "Pirate's Lady."
Rick
Queen
July 11th, 2005, 11:18 AM
Great story Tom, put a big 'ol smile on my face!! :thumb:
And Rick?? That vid was wonderful, I just had a bunch of officemates watching it over my shoulder!!
roo1788
July 11th, 2005, 11:21 PM
Great video...makes me miss the open water even more. Can't wait to get wet again. Thanks Rick!
sharon
July 12th, 2005, 07:10 PM
Is there an online site tracking Happy? I've been watching Fisher go on a turtle tracking website. He was released by the Newport Aquarium when he finally got too big for their tanks. He was born along the coast of NC, I think and was released there. He immediately traveled across the Atlantic and is hanging around off the coast of Africa.
Sometimes you get to feeling down and when you need a lift in the worst way you see something that makes you smile all over. Hardly any activity in the ocean brings more squeals and joy than the sighting of a sea turtle. You want to get close and watch the magnificence and grace as long as possible. Sea turtles are, well, just wonderful creatures.
On June 29 at 9:45 in the morning a turtle dubbed Happy broke through an eggshell and headed for the sea. Turtle experts checked her out and equipped her with a radio transponder. Happy made her way to the ocean just nine days after my own birthday. Almost immediately she got the travel groove and headed north. She has been averaging 45 kilometers each day and is presently 375 kilometers from her origin still going strong. We’re sure she has a destination in mind but only she and Mother Nature know for sure where that will be.
In 2003 two female Hawksbills were tracked. Nautila and Schillie also headed north riding their natural instinct to distant homes. Nautila’s destination turned out to be the Navidad Banks and Schillie picked Mona Island near Puerto Rico.
Travel on little Happy. The world is watching and we hope so much to see you in person one day in a place with palm trees, sand, sun, and lush coral.
HooAh!
sharon
July 12th, 2005, 07:12 PM
Thanks for sharing that great video, I love to hang out with turtles.
Perhaps someday we'll see Happy again... with luck for an encounter like this one (http://www.blackbeard-cruises.com/mov/Loggerhead_0001.wmv) :)
Rick
Tom Smedley
July 12th, 2005, 08:26 PM
I haven't found one yet. Got the information off Bonaire newsgroups and the Bonaire Reporter. Still looking.
Is there an online site tracking Happy? I've been watching Fisher go on a turtle tracking website. He was released by the Newport Aquarium when he finally got too big for their tanks. He was born along the coast of NC, I think and was released there. He immediately traveled across the Atlantic and is hanging around off the coast of Africa.
Corigan
July 12th, 2005, 08:49 PM
I haven't found one yet. Got the information off Bonaire newsgroups and the Bonaire Reporter. Still looking.I found one Tom! Seaturtle.org. Under the track button there is one for happy from bonaire 2005. Here is the link to Happy:
http://www.seaturtle.org/tracking/?tag_id=52042
Looks like happy is cruising around the dominican republic right now.. :)
Matt
Tom Smedley
July 12th, 2005, 11:08 PM
That is so cool!!! Thanks so much Matt. I wonder what force made her choose the DR. I just hope that she doesn't get jostled too much with Emily approaching.
Rick Murchison
July 12th, 2005, 11:26 PM
You didn't mention that Happy was a Loggerhead! You know Loggerheads are my favorites...
Thanks for finding that tracking site, Matt. That's great.
Rick :)
justleesa
July 12th, 2005, 11:34 PM
I found one Tom! Seaturtle.org. Under the track button there is one for happy from bonaire 2005. Here is the link to Happy:
http://www.seaturtle.org/tracking/?tag_id=52042
Looks like happy is cruising around the dominican republic right now.. :)
Matt
I think it's the wrong Happy. According to the data on the site this is an adult 1m big, 130KG Female that was released on the 24th, not the 29th.
But great story and a cool link anyway ;) Thanks
Tom Smedley
July 13th, 2005, 07:07 AM
When I first read the article it appeared that Happy was a hatchling. However, it turns out that she must have been in Bonaire to lay eggs and was caught and tagged by the turtle folks. In March we dove at one of the Slaagbai sites and saw a huge loggerhead. Then later on one turned up dead near Sorbonne. The paper said then that the dead turtle was one of two loggerheads that they had been watching. By any means, the trek back to the DR from Klein Bonaire by a single animal is fantastic.
justleesa
July 13th, 2005, 07:11 AM
Indeed it is ;)
Corigan
July 13th, 2005, 12:07 PM
Very cool indeed! I wasn't sure if it was the right Happy either due to thinking it was supposed to be a baby as well. I really like looking at fisher's graph off that page of heading across the atlantic. I just hope things are ok as they lost transmission of fisher off the coast of Africa right in the middle of hurrican season.. :/ I'm hoping it's just a malfunction in the battery/signal.
What I like is the animated maps that show how much they travel each day, it's amazing.
Matt
