AI Image Generated for Our Life in El Salvador showing a responsibly supervised baby sea-turtle release at sunrise on El Salvador’s Pacific coast.
Watching a baby sea turtle make its way across the sand toward the Pacific Ocean can be an unforgettable experience.
Several Salvadoran conservation organizations are giving the public an opportunity to witness this important stage of the turtle’s life while learning about the work required to protect the country’s marine wildlife.
Upcoming activities include public releases organized by the Zoological Foundation of El Salvador, known as FUNZEL. An overnight conservation experience is also planned at Barra de Santiago, here in western El Salvador.
These events combine tourism, environmental education and community conservation. However, releasing the hatchlings is only the final and most visible part of a much longer process.
Upcoming FUNZEL Turtle Releases
FUNZEL has announced several public turtle-release activities for the remainder of 2026.
The scheduled dates and times are:
- October 25 at 7:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m.
- November 8 at 3:30 p.m.
- November 22 at 3:30 p.m.
- December 6 at 3:30 p.m.
- December 20 at 3:30 p.m.
Anyone interested in participating should contact FUNZEL through WhatsApp at +503 7164-8246.
The announcement did not specify the beach, participation cost or number of available spaces. Visitors should confirm all those details directly with FUNZEL before making travel arrangements.
The organization explains that these activities are not simply opportunities to place a baby turtle on the sand. They are also intended to teach visitors about coastal ecosystems and the conservation work surrounding each release.
An Overnight Experience at Barra de Santiago
The Association of Women of Barra de Santiago, known as AMBAS, is organizing a more immersive activity on September 26 and 27, 2026.
The “Lunada Tortugas Marinas” will allow participants to spend a night near the AMBAS turtle hatchery at Barra de Santiago.
Activities are expected to include:
- Learning about the conservation work conducted by the women of AMBAS
- Accompanying the collection of turtle eggs
- Camping overnight near the beach
- Releasing hatchlings the following morning
Participants should arrive at 5:00 p.m. on September 26.
The cost is $20 per person and includes dinner, breakfast and a place to camp. Each participant must bring a tent.
Reservations and additional information are available through WhatsApp at 6839-4587. Because this activity is taking place soon, anyone interested should contact AMBAS to confirm that spaces remain available.
Four Marine-Turtle Species Visit El Salvador
Four of the world’s seven species of marine turtle nest along the coast of El Salvador.
They are:
- The olive ridley, known locally as the golfina
- The hawksbill, or carey
- The green or black turtle, known as the prieta
- The leatherback, or baule
All four are conservation priorities in El Salvador.
The leatherback is particularly vulnerable. It is the largest species of marine turtle, but its population in the eastern Pacific has declined dramatically.
The Ministry of Environment reported that leatherback hatchlings were documented during the 2025–2026 season. It was the first recorded occurrence in El Salvador since 2014.
This demonstrates why protecting nesting beaches and hatcheries remains so important.
What Happens Before the Release?
The public usually sees only the final minutes of the conservation process.
Long before the hatchlings appear, trained workers and community members patrol the beaches. They search for nesting females and protect vulnerable nests from poachers, predators, flooding and other dangers.
In many areas, the eggs are carefully collected and moved to protected incubation corrals. Conservation workers monitor them until the hatchlings begin emerging several weeks later.
The young turtles are then released under controlled conditions at an appropriate time of day.
This work requires months of nighttime patrols, monitoring, recordkeeping, beach cleaning and hatchery maintenance. Community organizations must also educate visitors and residents about the threats facing marine turtles.
The release is memorable, but it would not be possible without all the less visible work carried out beforehand.
Millions of Hatchlings Released
The Environmental Investment Fund of El Salvador, known as FIAES, supports turtle-conservation projects through partnerships with local organizations and the Ministry of Environment.
Participating organizations include FUNZEL, AMBAS, Fundación Doménech and OIKOS Solidaridad.
According to FIAES, its recent conservation projects have incubated more than 230,000 turtle eggs and released over 112,000 hatchlings.
These projects have also supported beach-cleaning campaigns, scientific tagging, environmental education and research into the social and economic conditions of coastal communities.
FIAES says the broader historical conservation effort in El Salvador has resulted in more than 8.5 million hatchlings being released from Salvadoran beaches.
Barra de Santiago’s Community Conservation
Barra de Santiago is especially important to those of us living in western El Salvador.
The area is a wetland of international importance and contains the largest expanse of mangroves in the western part of the country. Its beaches, estuary and mangrove forest provide habitat for marine turtles, birds, reptiles, fish and many other species.
AMBAS and the Association for the Conservation of Marine Turtles of Barra de Santiago, known as ACOTOMBAS, work to protect nests and operate incubation facilities.
Their efforts demonstrate how conservation can also support community development. Environmental tourism brings visitors to the area, creates income and gives local families an additional reason to protect natural resources.
Earlier this year, representatives from Garita Palmera in San Francisco Menéndez visited Barra de Santiago to learn from its successful model.
That is particularly interesting to me because Santa Elena and Garita Palmera are both in our part of Ahuachapán. It shows that the conservation experience developed at Barra de Santiago may help inspire similar efforts closer to our own community.
How Visitors Can Participate Responsibly
A turtle release should always be conducted under the supervision of a recognized conservation organization.
Participants should listen carefully to the instructions given by hatchery personnel. The needs of the turtles must come before photographs or entertainment.
Visitors should:
- Avoid flash photography
- Keep bright lights away from the beach
- Never disturb a nesting female
- Never dig into a nest
- Handle hatchlings only when instructed
- Keep beaches free of plastic and other trash
- Remain behind any boundaries established by conservation workers
- Allow the hatchlings to cross the sand naturally
The journey across the sand is part of the turtles’ natural process. Participants should not place them directly into the ocean unless trained conservation personnel specifically request it.
Visitors should also remember that El Salvador maintains a permanent prohibition against consuming, selling or purchasing marine-turtle eggs.
Protecting turtles does not end when the hatchlings reach the water. It also requires cleaner beaches, responsible fishing, reduced plastic waste and protection of the coastal habitat.
More Than a Memorable Photograph
There is something moving about watching such a small creature begin its journey into an enormous ocean.
Only a small percentage of marine-turtle hatchlings will survive long enough to become adults. Those that do may travel thousands of miles before a female eventually returns to a nesting beach.
Participating in a supervised release gives visitors an opportunity to understand how fragile that journey is.
However, we should be careful not to think that we personally saved a turtle simply because we helped release one. The real conservation work is performed by the people who protect the nesting females, collect the eggs, maintain the hatcheries and monitor the beaches throughout the season.
The greatest value of public participation is the awareness and financial support it can generate for that continuing work.
Conservation and Tourism Working Together
Marine-turtle releases show how tourism can become more than sightseeing.
Visitors receive a meaningful experience and learn about the natural environment. Community organizations receive attention and support. Local families may benefit from camping, meals, tours, transportation and other services.
When managed responsibly, this type of tourism gives natural resources an economic value without destroying them.
For those of us living near the coast, it is encouraging to see communities protecting wildlife while creating new opportunities for residents.
A baby turtle’s journey to the ocean may last only a few minutes. The work required to make that journey possible continues throughout the year.
Sources: elsalvador.com, El Salvador Times and the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources
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