We’re not the only ones with a wanderlust spirit. From the icy waters of Antarctica and the misty rainforests of the Amazon to the open plains of Kenya and Tanzania and the untouched landscapes of the Great White North, animals big and small seemingly share our infatuation with travel. Every year, millions of wildebeest thunder back and forth across the East African savanna in relentless pursuit of greener pastures. In Zambia, the November sky is filled with millions upon millions of eerie fruit bats. The red crab migration on Christmas Island, with its incomprehensible swarming sea of scarlet, is equally astounding. But perhaps the most fascinating and curious about Mother Nature’s many wildlife migrations is that of the sea turtle.
Did you know that sea turtles instinctively swim thousands of kilometres every year, returning as adults to the exact same beach on which they were born in order to mate and lay their own eggs? With an uncannily accurate internal compass, it is believed that these enormous reptiles actually rely on the Earth’s magnetic fields to guide them back, intuitively, to their original birthplace.
Located off the warm, tropical shores of Zanzibar, the exclusive &Beyond Mnemba Island is a private barefoot beach paradise boasting just 12 luxury beach bandas. It is a peaceful and secluded oasis, not only for guests but also for sea turtles. &Beyond Mnemba is one of only two protected nesting sites in Zanzibar for the endangered green sea turtle.
Further south, &Beyond Vamizi Island is also a significant breeding site for this threatened species. Home to Mozambique’s largest recorded population of green sea turtles, &Beyond Vamizi’s conservation team is responsible for one of East Africa’s longest standing turtle monitoring programmes.
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