FAQ
Questions
Walks, cleanups, volunteering, collaborating, and what to do if you find a turtle.
- Species
- Olive Ridley onlyLepidochelys olivacea
- Where we work
- Coromandel coastOut of Chennai, Tamil Nadu.
- Nesting season here
- December to MarchWalks run in season; cleanups and team events mostly outside it.
- Not answered here
- Write to uscleanbeach@saveaturtle.in. Questions about an animal on the sand come first.
Turtle Walk · 4 questions
Walking a nesting beach at night
The night code and kit list are on turtle walks.
Will I actually see a turtle on a walk?
Often, no. You may walk five kilometres and see nothing, or find a track, a nest or a turtle. Nobody can promise a sighting.
When do walks run, and how late do they start?
Only in the nesting season, December to March. Walks start late at night and run for hours. Dates are on events.
How do I book a walk?
Register for each walk separately; one place is one named person.
Can I bring my children, and can I take photographs?
Minimum age is set per walk. Children must manage kilometres of soft sand in the dark, quietly. Under-18s need a parent or guardian and a signed form.
Keep your phone dark: torch, flash and ringer off. Photos near a nesting female are the leader’s call.
International Coastal Cleanup · 3 questions
Lifting waste off the coast
Zones, dates and group days: coastal cleanup.
What do I need to bring to a cleanup?
Closed shoes, a hat, sunscreen and a refillable water bottle. No single-use plastic.
Is a beach cleanup actually useful?
It does not fix the waste system, and the tide brings more. But it clears netting, line and hard plastic from where turtles nest, and we weigh and log what comes off each stretch to push for change at the source.
Can my office or college run a cleanup as a team day?
Yes. Your group takes one zone after a briefing, and what it collects is weighed. No vehicles on the sand, and the group sweeps its zone to the end (see the sweep). Start at collaborate with us or write to cleanbeach@saveaturtle.in.
Volunteering · 3 questions
Volunteering
Roles, training and conduct: volunteering. Beach work follows our field code.
How do I volunteer, and what would I do?
Write to cleanbeach@saveaturtle.in with your city, skills and availability. Work includes zone desks, rope lines, weighing bags, recording tracks, translating briefings into Tamil and walking the beach at first light before events. Roles are on volunteering.
Do I need experience, or Tamil?
No experience needed. Tamil is not required but helps, because most people who live and work on these beaches speak it.
How much time does it take, and can I do one event only?
One event is fine. Roles tied to a beach ask for a few mornings a month across a season. Everything else is per event.
Collaborate · 2 questions
Companies, schools and colleges
Details: collaborate with us. Read the field code first; it decides what is possible.
Can my organisation collaborate with you?
Yes. Companies, colleges, schools and groups can collaborate with us on walks, cleanups and awareness sessions. Everything we do is voluntary. We ask for a named contact who reads the field code first. Write to cleanbeach@saveaturtle.in.
Can we brand the event, put up a stall, or bring a camera crew?
Not on the sand: no branding, stalls, stage, lights, vehicles, drones or flash. Desks, banners and vehicles stay on the road. Crews are welcome on foot with their own kit.
I have found a turtle right now. What do I do?
Do not move it, pour water on it or push it into the sea. Keep people and dogs away. A large turtle digging high on dry sand is nesting: move twenty metres back, behind her. Then go to report a turtle.
Do you have a phone number I can call?
Not yet. Contact the Tamil Nadu Forest Department range office for your stretch; only they may lawfully handle a Schedule I animal. Also write to cleanbeach@saveaturtle.in for a timed record. From December to March, an Instagram message to @saveaturtle.chennai is often seen sooner.
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