Another beautiful morning with the sunrise revealing a perfect set of Loggerhead tracks and a nesting site. This turtle mom bravely climbed over multiple rows of tire tracks to lay her eggs close up to the dune in the four wheel drive town of Swan. She knew better than to wander around in traffic and came straight onto the beach, laid her eggs and went straight back out to the ocean.
Nest 4 turtle tracks and nesting site
Tony, our Lead Responder and ATV Driver quickly found the eggs while his team members made their way to the nesting site. The team collected data and worked to secure the site. Due to this section of beach being a main thoroughfare for vehicles, extra measures are taken to ensure the nest site is protected. In addition to our normal set of stakes and flagging tape, we add an additional set of extra long stakes with reflective strips around the little nest site to help notify vehicles a turtle nest is on their roadway. As you can see, this turtle mom put her nest just to the side of a homeowner’s driveway.
Double sets of stakes to help vehicles navigate around the nest site
Now we wait while these newly laid eggs mature into little hatchlings and emerge from the nest. We will be there to help them cross the beach roadway and head off into the ocean. Unlike mom’s journey on the beach, we will smooth out the tire tracks and make it easier for them to reach the sea. These little guys will spend the first 24 to 48 hours swimming until they reach the open ocean and follow the currents around. They will take refuge among the sargassum seaweed and spend their time eating and growing.
- nest number: 04
- town: Swan Beach
- date eggs laid: 06/08/2022
- actual emergence date: 8/18/2022
- live hatchlings: 108
- total eggs: 135
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