The Cayman Islands are know historically for the many turtles that used to inhabit the waters around the three islands. In fact, when Christopher Colombus sailed by Little Cayman and Cayman Brac in 1503, there were so many turtles in the water that he wrote in their logs that they could have probably walked to shore on the backs of the turtles. It was because of this that he named the those two islands, "Las Tortugas", after the turtles. It was esthimated that there were about 6 million turtles in the Cayman Islands around that time.
Turtle populations began dropping dramatically when sailors used the Cayman Islands as a restocking point for fresh meat, turtle meat. It was discovered that a turtle could survive on the deck of a ship for quite a while, so the crew could always have fresh meat on hand when needed. Because of this the wild turtle population was nearly depleted. In 1978 when turtles were thought to be extirpated in the islands, the goverment started to issue regulations on fishing for turtle, and in 1996 they banned it outright. Since then turtle populations have been increasing in the Cayman Islands.
Green turtles and loggerheads nest on the beaches of all three islands. And nest have increased from 30 green turtle nests in the 1990s to having 300 documented nests in 2012. If you go snorkeling around Grand Cayman you will likely see juevenile green and hawksbill turtles that come to the islands to feed on the plentiful seagrass.
If you would like to know more about turtles and how you can help protect them and do your part to help increase the numbers of turtles in Cayman, I encourage you to check inside the building nearby where the cache is placed. There are trained naturalists that work inside and are more than happy to answer any questions you may have about turtles or the islands in general. Please stop in and say hi!