Sea turtle hatchlings set to make debut at N.C. Aquarium at Fort Fisher

NEW HANOVER COUNTY, NC (WWAY) — Two of the newest…and smallest additions to the North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher are set make make their debuts this weekend.

“Maris” and “Atlas” will be on display beginning Saturday in the Loggerhead Sea Turtle conservation habitat. The 2024 hatchlings came from a nest that hatched July 19th on Carolina Beach. Pleasure Island Sea Turtle Project volunteers rescued the hatchlings from a nest excavation on Kure Beach.

The names came of list generated by staff and volunteers, with school children getting to vote on their favorites.

Atlas means “a book of maps”, since turtles are so good at navigating the ocean, and Maris is Latin for “the sea”, since it highlights their marine environment.

The students who voted on the names are from classrooms in the NCAFF Adopt-a-Turtle program. By adopting a sea turtle, students receive monthly updates with information including the animal’s weight and length. Each class also receives a certificate of participation. The aquarium will also share photos as the turtles grow.

Every year, the aquarium team takes in and shares the story of two loggerhead sea turtle hatchlings who did not make the initial trek to the ocean.

While everyone will be saying “hello” to Maris and Atlas, they’ll be bidding farewell to Aleta and Pico, two yearling loggerheads that came to NCAFF as hatchlings in fall 2023 and will soon be released to the ocean.