Our Friday team continues its lucky streak during their weekly beach patrol. Starting with a stunning sunrise and ending with two additional nests and evidence of a new unique momma visiting the beach as we head into heart of nesting season.
Pic courtesy of fellow turtle patroller, friend, photographer, and paddle boarder extraordinaire Julie, approaching the island from Hog’s inlet.
To be fair, the crawl that would become N3R, was laid down Wednesday night and discovered and worked by the Thursday team. We were expecting the return of our May 22 nester, but the crawl was dissimilar to that earlier one, so it was determined to be a different turtle. That momma did her job well in disguising the nest, and despite a great effort, the chamber was not found.
Today we were able to build on what they started, and using their documentation, were able to locate the nest chamber. We also had an assist from a ghost crab who left a hole nearby. He did end up snatching himself an egg, as we found an opened/empty eggshell in the nest cavity.
Because of its location on the beach, the nest was relocated to a more ideal location. 113 eggs
laid. 1 taken by a ghost crab, 1 for DNA research.
Nest 3R on the books.
We were not done yet! Our expected-to-return momma did not disappoint and nested again last night. 14 days from her last nesting effort.
This time momma crawled high up on the beach then turned without stopping and headed back to the water. She nested about midway down the beach.
The egg chamber was found and relocated to the area nearer the dune. As with all our nests, a metal cage was installed to keep coyotes out of the egg chamber. 104 eggs laid, 1 used for DNA research.
Pics by Julie, Caroline, Kim P. and Keela. Text by Kim T.
All sea turtle monitoring by Waties Island Sea Turtle Patrol is permitted and authorized by SCDNR under Permit MTP 500.
No comments:
Post a Comment