The Florida coast guard released over 500 baby sea turtles onto the Atlantic sea-beds about six miles off the coast in hopes it would give them a better chance of survival.
The crew consisted of 311 loggerheads and 194 green sea turtles that were between two days and two weeks old, NBC 6 reported.
The turtles were placed gently into cushioning beds of seaweed, which Chief Cannon Schider-Heisel with the U.S. Coast Guard described as La-Z-Boy's" for the little turtles, the Associated Press reported via KiroTV.
"Our goal is to release them a little bit spread out so they don't get bunched up and have a higher chance of survival," Coast Guard Petty Officer Humberto Diaz told NBC.
In seven to 10 years the adolescent turtles will move closer to shore, when their big enough to be unappetizing to most predators. Turtles can live for around 80 years, and don't reach full maturity until they are 20 years old.
Loggerheads are threatened and green sea turtles are endangered, it is illegal to "touch or disturb" either species while they are nesting, the AP reported. Only about 1,000 baby sea turtles survive to full maturity.
"A lot of these I literally pulled out of a nest," marine scientist Melanie Stadler told the AP. "I have a connection with a lot of them, as do the rest of the turtle specialists. We all rescue these little guys every morning and knowing that we get to release them and they are healthy and ready to go is pretty awesome."
Once the turtles are released into the ocean researchers expect them to stay in their seaweed haven.
"These are what we call swimmers," Stadler told NBC. "These turtles have already lost instinct to go to shore."
The mass turtle release proved to be a rewarding experience.
I'm very passionate about the environment," Schider-Heisel, told the AP. "And my job affords me the chance to do that sometimes, where I get to help educate the public about the environment. It's a facet of my job that I love."
