About Turtle Cove
The Turtle Cove Environmental Research Station is a field research and educational facility of Southeastern Louisiana University and is located in the Lake Pontchartrain estuarine ecosystem.
Because of its location at the upper end of this major estuary, Turtle Cove is within one hour by boat of various wetland environments and their aquatic counterparts. These environments range from entirely fresh to moderately saline environments and include bottomland hardwood forests, baldcypress swamps, and fresh and intermediate marshes.
Moreover, each of these habitat types exists in relatively undisturbed, degraded, and restored states, thus facilitating comparative research. Because of its unique location and characteristics, this facility complements other field stations in the state and across the nation. With a rich regional history and with an extremely competent staff, Turtle Cove is leading the way among research stations for its technological sophistication and aggressive educational outreach. Learn more about recent research projects.
The Mission
Turtle Cove's mission is "to promote environmental awareness in southeastern Louisiana; to encourage educators and their students to take an active role in environmental restoration and education; and to serve as a liaison among research scientists, educators and students, and the general public."