VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) — A recent discovery of a leatherback turtle nesting on a beach at Naval Air Station Oceana Dam Neck Annex marked not only something exciting for those who found it, but it also made history.
“First, we had to pinch ourselves,” said Erin Bates, a stranding response team rehabilitation manager at the Virginia Aquarium. “For the first time in the state of Virginia, we had a leatherback sea turtle come up and lay a nest on one of our beaches.”
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As rumors started flying of the leatherback on the beach, Bates bolted to the search.
“As we got more pictures coming in and more people on site, it was like, there’s no question this is a leatherback. Like, we have to get down there.” Bates said…