English: "Whoa, dude...these are sea turtles man!" That's right! These are actually threatened loggerhead sea turtles found on the beach in Core Banks, NC.

While these were photographed in North Carolina, back in July 2013, the USGS provided new research with regards to sea turtles in northern Gulf of Mexico challenging a widely-held view that sea turtles remain near one beach throughout their nesting season. The research indicated that threatened loggerhead sea turtles in the northern Gulf of Mexico can travel distances up to several hundred miles and visit offshore habitats between nesting events in a single season, taking them through waters impacted by oil and fishing industries. This suggests that the threatened species may require broader habitat protection to recover.

Learn more at www.usgs.gov/newsroom/article.asp?ID=3641

Photo Credit: Dawn Childs, USGS