How do hatchling sea turtles move on sand using limbs that are adapted for swimming in the sea? A recent paper by Biology graduate student Nicole Mazouchova and collaborators addresses this question, and has been featured by the BBC News. Mazouchova and her colleagues found that the sea turtles use their flippers to create solid blocks of sand that they can then push off. More info on the research, including video footage of the sea turtles making their way across the sand, can be found at:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8505034.stm

The full text of the article can be found at:
http://rsbl.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/early/2010/02/08/rsbl.2009.1041.abstract?sid=0ba77138-1f20-4f7a-acfb-1a6d1fce0b8a
Mazouchova’s coauthors on the study are Nick Gravish, Andrei Savu, and Daniel Goldman (GT Physics).