Female marine turtles bury their eggs on beaches and, having completed their only maternal obligation, return to the sea. Left behind, the unborn young must face the world on their own from the moment they emerge from their nest.

After several weeks, the tiny turtles that hatch must dig their way to the surface and the navigate the dangerously exposed beach to find their way to the sea as quickly as possible.

To survive, they must move quickly and in the right direction, careful to avoid the many predators that scour the beaches. As the little turtles enter the water, they embark upon the mysterious first phase of their lives sometimes referred to as their "lost years".

As they disappear beneath the waves the bid their native beach farewell for the next five to seven years. Scientists have few clues as to where the hatchlings venture and the challenges they face as they grow into young adult turtles.

Some have been found happily adrift in mats of sargassum and sea grasses where they feast on the plentiful vegetation as they grow, enjoying refuge from predators. But the majority of hatchlings go unaccounted for during this stage of their life. After their lost years, the turtles will return to their native coastal waters. Females will emerge on the beach where they were born to lay their eggs and slip away into the sea, thus completing the cycle.