Friday, May 29 - Nest 2R and a Sweet Surprise

 The Waties Island Friday team was blessed this morning to come upon a nesting momma just finishing up the arduous task of laying her clutch of eggs on what is likely her natal beach in a ritual performed by her ancestors through eons of time. Sea turtle nesting normally occurs at night, underneath the stars and moon, so we rarely get the witness this biological legacy millions of years in the making. We watched in awe as she used her rear flippers to pat the sand down to cover the eggs, then use her front flippers to fling around the soft sand to disguise the nest site. As she turned and moved rather quickly toward the sea, we were able to complete some measurements and observations for reporting to SCDNR. Thanks to the high tide, she was soon in the water and on her way

                 A big girl! Look at that big head. She puts the “logger” in Loggerhead, 

  

    These mommas carry entire ecosystems on their carapace. A few barnacles hitching a ride.

Once we bid her adieu, it was time to get to work. Because the nest was laid just below the spring high tide line, the nest was relocated to a nearby site closer to the dunes. This clutch contained 120 eggs. With one egg used for DNA testing, 119 eggs were tucked into their new home to begin their incubation.

                                                 Carefully excavating the original egg chamber

                                                          Digging the new nest

                            What a great morning and a birthday surprise for Suzanne! 

Pics by Caroline and Kim. Text by Kim.

All sea turtle monitoring by Waties Island Sea Turtle Patrol is permitted and authorized by SCDNR under Permit MTP 500. 

Wednesday, May 27th - No Sea Turtle action, lots of Sargassum on the beach

 Hey All - sorry to say we have not had any nesting ladies visit the island this week - yet.

 

With the long shore current and the wind it has pushed a large amount of Sargassum on the beach along with lots of trash articles.  It was a hot humid day on the beach this morning and along with the Sargassum a number of Portuguese Man O'War were also pushed into shore.  These are beautiful animals, but they will give you a good sting.  Unfortunately, they do not have a propulsion method and depend on the wind to push them around in the ocean to feed.  

 

Lots of trash was collected today and bags left by the Tuesday Volunteers were also collected.

 Hoping that the other day volunteers will get lucky with a nest.

 Text and pictures by Leslie P

All sea turtle monitoring by Waties Island Sea Turtle Patrol is permitted and authorized by SCDNR under Permit MTP500.

Monday, Memorial Day, 5/25/26

 Rather sticky start to the morning. Our hair doubled in size! Beautiful breezy walk on a very wide beach on the way back. 

Turtles must be on holiday. Hopefully, they’ll return tomorrow. 

Interesting crab impressions below the tide line and man-o-war pulled halfway in a ghost crab hole. 

Blog completed by Kathy (text and photos courtesy of Sharon.)

All sea turtle monitoring by Waties Island Sea Turtle Patrol is permitted and authorized by SCDNR under Permit MTP500.

Friday, May 22 - Nest #1R

 What a privilege it is to have a front row seat to Mother Nature’s wonder during our weekly beach patrol. On today’s agenda were darkened skies, muggy feels, a big low tide beach and very soft sand. The only evidence of mankind were numerous 4-wheeler tracks up and down the beach. Those were not the kind of tracks we were seeking! As we headed up island, Mother Nature once again trumped anything man can do by displaying a big beautiful loggerhead crawl emerging from the sea. Second year volunteer Cherie was first to spot the tracks and was thrilled to find her first crawl. 36” crawl with a middle drag mark. Efficient in and out. No messin’ around for this momma. 

There was a body pit with potential for housing a nest, but it was lacking some of the common elements for a nesting event- the tracks were equidistant to the water’s edge, not a lot of thrown sand, undefined crescent. But there was a promising, although concerning, sign - a big crab hole within the body pit area. Could our perennial foe actually help us locate a nest today? 

We probed quite a while, but weren’t finding the soft sand. What we couldn’t find by probing, we were able to find through digging. Our new volunteer LeighAnn found the shallow nest very near the area of the ghost crab hole. 

Because the nest was located within the high spring tide line. It was relocated to an area higher up toward the dune. The nest contained 104 eggs and 1 spacer egg. Spacer eggs are small unfertilized non viable eggs common in Leatherback clutches, but are also found in some Loggerhead nests. Biologists are unsure why turtles lay these. Common theories include they help with moisture regulation, allow for critical oxygen to circulate or even as a predator decoy. 

                                                                     Small spacer egg

Relocation was completed, a DNA sample taken, the new nest measured, marked, and protected from predators with a wire cage. Sleep tight little ones. See ya in approx 60 days!

                                                                   Happy turtle crew!

Pics by LeighAnn, Caroline, Cherie, and Suzanne. Text by Kim.

All sea turtle monitoring by Waties Island Sea Turtle Patrol is permitted and authorized by SCDNR under Permit MTP500. 

Thursday, May 14th - High Tide this morning, no sea turtle nesting, yet

 This morning was a vigorous walk for the volunteers due to the high tide coming in, hard to find terra firma to walk on.  We have not seen any sea turtle nesting action yet.  The nesting is starting to take off on the South Carolina southern beaches.  We just need to be patient, our turn will come.

Since there is no nesting news, I will share some pictures from this morning on Waties Island.

Dawn over Dun Sound

Here comes the sun

Sunrise over the dunes

 

 

 

 

 

I was asked about a plant this morning and I had forgotten what is was called, so I looked it up again - the plant is called the American Searocket.  These pictures were taken on the lower end (Hog Inlet) portion of the island.

Searocket -Detail look of the leaves

Here's a small plant - ready to bloom - American Searocket

 

Here's more pictures of the beauty of the island.

All sea turtle monitoring by the Waties Island Sea Turtle Patrol is permitted and authorized by SCDNR Marine Turtle Conservation Program under Permit MTP500.  

Pictures and text by Leslie

 

 

Pictures from Monday last week - May 4th

  Beautiful sunrise corpus first walk.

We did have to bundle up !,

These Plover eggs were found right on the beach!!

Pictures and text by Sharon Turek

Ladies Island performs research and management activities regarding sea turtle conservation it accordance with SCDNR permit number MTP 500.

Tuesday, May 5th - Quiet and cool day on the beach

 Hi All - just sharing some pictures from our walk this morning, and sharing a picture from the Monday Volunteers.  No sea turtle action yet.  When I checked this morning South Carolina has had eight False Crawls, all on southern beaches - no nests yet.

Beautiful sunrise over the marsh this morning.

 

 

 

 

 

If you have never seen a Plover's nest - here's an excellent picture taken by our Monday Volunteers.

 

If you have not been to the "short end" of the island recently, it has certainly changed.  There is a large sand bar that needs to be walked.  

 

All sea turtle monitoring by the Waties Island Sea Turtle Patrol is permitted and authorized by SCDNR Marine Turtle Conservation Program under Permit MTP500.  

 

 Photos by Leslie - Plover nest by the Monday Volunteers Text by Leslie

 

First day of 2026 Waties Island Marine Sea Turtle Patrol

Each spring we eagerly seek out harbingers that the warm summer season is on the horizon. For some it’s the crack of the bat on opening day, the first tentative foray into the surf, or the first tomato plant lovingly placed in the garden. For the 48 volunteers of the Waties Island Marine Sea Turtle Patrol, it’s the first official day of nesting season in South Carolina and the return to our beautiful island. 

This year, the Friday team had the honor of the first patrol of the season. To the surprise of no one, there was no evidence of nesting activity noted today. With water temperatures at around 69 degrees and the sands still warming up, it may be several days or even a few weeks before our mammas make their way onshore to nest. But we know they are out there heading toward their natal beaches - some for the first time in 25-30 years since they emerged themselves as tiny hatchlings from these same shores. 

While it felt a little more like March than May 1 out there today, with the cool temps, ever present off shore winds and mostly cloudy skies, it’s only a matter of time when we will be seeing evidence of these ancient travelers’ arrival written in the sand. Here’s to an active and busy 2026 nesting season!

So, as my friend and fellow LOA Sharon has noted, I am able to take 400+ words to say “I have nothing to report.” But I do have some pics of our island from Day 1 to share. 

Crossing the bridge from the mainland to the island. Our first “awwww” moment of the season.

The Inlet tidal influences at the lower end of the Island have made significant changes to the landscape.

                                                 A peak of sun from the mostly cloudy skies.

                                                            But, clouds mostly prevail.

                                                         Happy volunteers!

Photos by Kim P and Carolyn. Text by Kim T.

All sea turtle monitoring by the Waties Island Sea Turtle Patrol is permitted and authorized by SCDNR Marine Turtle Conservation Program under Permit MTP500.