Hawaii: Off in a Herd of Turtles!

Contrary to popular belief, green sea turtles are swift, ferocious and formidable animals on land. Here I am ready to sprint away from these turtles that have lined up on the shores of the Black Sand Beach in Kona. I am risking my life as these reptilians will snap your leg off with one chomp. They can get up on their flippers and run almost as fast as a gazelle. That's why the sign warns visitors (what Hawaiians call "mainlanders") to stay 15-feet away - and not to "ride" the turtles (especially if you're a woman).

Hawaiians traditionally use spears and black sand turtle dogs, like this snarly guy, to hunt down, and protect their families from herds of marauding turtles.

(The dog in the photo was devoured by the turtles shortly after this photo was taken!)

If you believe what I've just written (Mom and Dad) I have a large "Mallard Duck Sanctuary" to sell you in Northern Ontario (also known as "swamp").

To the contrary green sea turtles are so slow on land you almost need time-lapse photography to track their movements. They're not much faster when they come ashore either.  They bob in the water like logs and paddle a little farther towards shore with each wave. Once their bellies are on the sand or rocks they drag themselves ever so slowly onto the beach with each surge of surf until they are completely out of water. Much like many of the large, well-fed "mainlanders" that I encountered along the Black Sand Beach.

Here is my friend, Curt (Curtle-the-Turtle) from Oregon.  You can see that he's getting a little aggressive because I've moved within 15-feet.

But later when he fell asleep, I snuck up and made a funny face on his belly with some black sand...

Because of their slow moving, docile nature, green sea turtles (and also Curt) are vulnerable on - or near - the shoreline. They can swim very swiftly when alarmed, but when they're bobbing around in the shallows they are at the mercy of every human - which can be a precarious existence. That's why signs are posted and resident Hawaiians volunteer to police the humans at popular beaches.