2009 Turtle Season

October 30, 2009

Nest 26 was inventoried last night, all 103 eggs were bad – another casualty of Bill.

October 18, 2009

Nest 27 was inventoried last night and 75 shells were found, plus 27 bad eggs. They must have hatched on Wednesday night during the rain.

October 8, 2009

Nest 21 was excavated last night. There were 124 unhatched eggs, obviously due to the overwash from Bill.
Lynda

September 9, 2009

Nest #22 hatched last night with 127 turtles. As this was a moved nest with 133 eggs, it was inventoried and 6 bad eggs were found. This was a great result after the nest was overwashed with the tides from Bill.
Lynda

September 8, 2009

Green has been delivered to #23, 24 and 25.
Ev

September 1, 2009

The remaining Turtles hatched out of Nest # 20 sometime last night and I inventoried it this morning finding 3 dead hatchlings, 2 bad eggs and hundreds of fire ants. The final numbers for nest # 20 are 118 live hatchlings to water, 5 bad eggs and 6 dead hatchlings. These are great numbers for a nest that was over washed in July, relocated 44 days after being laid and going through tidal inundation from storm Bill. Thanks for all volunteer help and support in making this happen.
Ev

August 29, 2009

23 hatchlings came out of #20 last night.
Ev

August 28, 2009

Nest # 19 final numbers 113 hatchlings and 3 bad eggs. Another great nest.
Ev

August 26, 2009

Nest # 19 hatched out 69 turtles last night plus a couple more came out after the boil.
Ev

August 25, 2009

Nothing to report.
Ev

August 24, 2009

Nothing to report this morning.
Lynda

August 23, 2009

Although the tide did not come up as high, nests 22, 24, 25, 26 and 27 were overwashed.
Lynda

August 22, 2009

Unfortunately the tide came in much higher than we anticipated so we’re not sure how many viable nests we have left.

Nest 16 hatched around 9 pm last night with over 100 turtles. It was inventoried this morning with 112 shells, 3 unhatched eggs, one dead and 3 live turtles.

Nest 17 also hatched with 122 live hatchlings and 6 bad eggs.

Nest 18 was badly flooded and was dug up this morning with 78 dead hatchlings and 9 bad eggs.

Nests 20, 21, 23, 24, 25, 27 were all overwashed despite our moving 21 back 100 feet yesterday.
Lynda & Ev

August 21, 2009

Nest 14 hatched last night. It was inventoried before the tide could wash over it. We had 102 hatchlings and 7 unhatched eggs. Nest 12 was inventoried with 96 shells and no bad eggs. This was a 100% hatch rate from a moved nest – a great result. Because of the high tides forecasted for this weekend Nests 20 and 21 have been moved back closer to the dunes.
Lynda

August 20, 2009

Last night’s inventory of nest # !5 yielded 18 bad eggs and 20 live hatchlings. Nothing else to report.
Ev

August 19, 2009

Last nights inventory of nest # 13 produced 9 more live hatchlings, one dead hatchling and 4 bad eggs. This was a moved nest that yielded a 96% hatch rate. Excellent job by all. Nothing new this morning.
Ev

August 18, 2009

Nest # 12 hatched out 94 turtles last night,and more came out of # 13 and 15. Nest # 16 was collared last night and green has been delivered to # 17 and 18.
Ev

August 17, 2009

Nest #15 hatched last night at 51 days with 78 turtles. Barb was putting out the green when a big hole appeared. More turtles came out of #13. Nest #10 was inventoried with 104 shells, 1 bad egg, 1 dead turtle and two live.
Lynda

August 16, 2009

Nest # 13 hatched last night with 102 turtles. Nothing else to report.
Ev

August 15, 2009

Nest #11 was inventoried last night with 50 bad eggs found and one live hatchling – a disappointing result.
Lynda

August 14, 2009

The inventory last night of nest # 7 resulted in 107 egg shells, 8 bad eggs and one live hatchling. # 10 boiled up 101 hatchlings around 7:45 pm. The morning patrol was delayed by lightning and rain, no new turtles. Green is at # 14.
Ev

August 13, 2009

Inventoried # 8 last night, 96 egg shells and one bad egg. Nest # 11 had 40 hatchlings at about 11:00 last night.
Ev

August 12, 2009

Nothing to report this morning.
Lynda

August 11, 2009

Lots of good news. We had nest 27 this morning with a 42″ crawl at marker 58.6. 102 eggs were moved back from the high tide line. Also a false crawl of 35″. Nest #6 was inventoried last night with 122 shells, 9 unhatched eggs and one live turtle. Nest #7 hatched last night around 9:30 with 106 turtles.
Lynda

August 10, 2009

Nest #8 hatched last night with 78 turtles. One more came out overnight.
Lynda

August 9, 2009

Nest #9 was inventoried last night with 116 shells, 10 unhatched eggs. 18 turtles went into the ocean. Nothing this morning.
Lynda

August 8, 2009

Nest 6 had a textbook hatch last night with 117 turtles in the water before 9:30. Nest 9 had 15 more turtles out.
Lynda

August 7, 2009

People saw 28 turtles come out of nest #9 last night. A few more came out overnight. Nothing else to report.
Lynda

August 6, 2009

55 turtles boiled out of #9 last night at 52 days, just after Barb and company finished putting the green out. #13 had a indentation in it this morning. I’ll deliver green to it this afternoon.
Ev

August 5, 2009

Nest #2 was inventoried last night with disappointing results. 46 egg shells, 86 unhatched eggs, but one live turtle walked to the ocean with over 100 people watching. Nothing else this morning.
Lynda

August 4, 2009

A couple of more out of #2. Green delivered to 8 and 9. Nothing else.
Ev

August 3, 2009

A quiet morning with only 4 more turtles out of nest 2 overnight.
Lynda

August 2, 2009

Team 2 were happy to see 38 turtles come out of nest #2 last night. We inventoried nest #3 with 122 egg shells, 5 bad eggs and one baby turtle.
Lynda

August 1, 2009

Nest #1 was inventoried last night with 108 shells, 12 bad eggs and one dead. 36 hatchlings were put in the ocean. Nothing new this morning.
Lynda

July 31, 2009

Just when we thought we wouldn’t get another nest, we had #26 this morning with a 29″ crawl at marker 70. We moved 103 eggs back from the high tide line.

Nest 5 was inventoried last night – there were 99 shells, 21 bad eggs and 9 live turtles. Nest 1 had 8 more turtles out.
Lynda

July 30, 2009

Nest #4 was inventoried last night. There were 128 shells, 21 unhatched eggs and one dead. Three turtles were put into the water. At 149 eggs this was a large nest. #3 hatched overnight but due to the wind and rain, it was hard to determine whether there was a boil or not. More turtles came out of #1.
Ev

July 29, 2009

Nest #1 hatched last night with 68 turtles. More came out of #4 and #5.
Lynda

July 28, 2009

No new nest.

Turtles continue to be unpredictable. Even after large holes appeared in nest 1 it didn’t hatch. Nest 5 at the Baptists hatched overnight despite no sign of activity earlier.

Nest 4 had one more turtle come out around 7 pm, watched by about 50 people.
Lynda

July 27, 2009

No new nests but the good news is #4 hatched around 7:00 pm last night with 85 turtles counted. Several more came out overnight. #1 has a large crack so should hatch tonight.
Lynda

July 26, 2009

No new nests but #4 had maybe three turtles out and a big hole. As there was no more activity we filled in the hole and hope team 4 see a boil tonight.
Lynda

July 25, 2009

Nothing to report.
Ev

July 24, 2009

No new nests for us this morning but we were disappointed to see a nest about 20 feet the other side of the pier, which belongs to Oak Island. We decided against “poaching” it.

We had seven nests overwashed by the high tide. For those of you new to the program, overwashing doesn’t do any harm as long as the water doesn’t sit in the nest. Some of the runways need fixing. Good luck to those of you sitting on nests, hope something happens soon.
Lynda

July 23, 2009

Nothing to report.
Ev

July 22, 2009

Nothing to report.
Ev

July 21, 2009

We had nest 25 today with a 36″ crawl at marker 78 (yes, the Villas again). We moved 125 eggs back from the high tide line. The mother did a little turn before or after laying, possibly due to people being around, which made it harder to read, but she did lay right where she should have.

July 20, 2009

We had nest #24 with a 34″ crawl at marker 78.6 – the area in front of the Villas is getting pretty crowded. We moved 121 eggs back from the high tide line.
Lynda

July 19, 2009

Happy to report that we had nest #23 at marker 67.1 with a 34″ crawl. She had already made a false crawl close by where she went all the way to the dunes, but then laid her nest close to the high tide line. We moved 103 eggs.
Lynda

July 18, 2009

No activity.
Lynda

July 17, 2009

Nothing new this morning. What was missed in yesterday’s email is that Nest #22 was laid below the high tide line and 133 eggs were relocated.

For new volunteers, you might want to subscribe to www.seaturtle.org to get information on turtles other than our beach.

Tee Shirts, hats and stuffed turtles are now available at the Town Hall. Volunteers can purchase shirts and hats for their own use at $10 each. We have them at our house if you want to stop by. See the photo I took below of the merchandise:

Merchandise_101_0357_sm

July 16, 2009

FINALLY! We had nest #22 today with a34″ crawl at marker loc.57.7
Ev

July 15, 2009

Nothing to report.
Ev

July 14, 2009

Nothing to report this morning.

Thanks to all who came to the meeting last night, it was very productive and it was good to meet some new volunteers. Too bad the turtles are not appreciating all the willing workers waiting to help them.
Lynda

July 13, 2009

Two false crawls of 29″ but no nest.
Lynda

July 12, 2009

Another disappointing morning – nothing to report.
Lynda

July 11, 2009

One 29″ false crawl this morning.
Lynda

July 10, 2009

Nothing to report.
Lynda

July 9, 2009

We had nest #21 with a 38″crawl at marker 71. We also had a 33″ false crawl.
Ev

July 8, 2009

No activity today.
Lynda

July 7, 2009

We had nest #20 with a 32″ crawl at 67.5. We also had 3 false crawls. Yesterday late afternoon we had a stranding of a immature Green Sea Turtle, fresh dead from a prop strike. It is being sent to the WRC.
Ev

July 6, 2009

Another day with no turtles.
Lynda

July 5, 2009

No turtles again.
Lynda

July 4, 2009

One alligator in the water in the 600 block, No turtles.
Ev

July 3, 2009

Again nothing to report.
Lynda

July 2, 2009

No activity today.

July 1, 2009

We had nest #19 at marker 56.5 with a 32″ crawl and a false crawl also of 32″. This was the same turtle as she had a distinctive flipper.
Lynda

June 30, 2009

Nothing to report.

June 29, 2009

We had nest #17 with a 34″ crawl at 59.9 in front of the Lighthouse. We moved 128 eggs back from the high tide line. Nest 18 with a 29″ crawl had four volunteers digging before Milt finally located the eggs. This was laid at marker 77.9 (the Villas again). We also had a false crawl of 31″ and a ghost crab dug one egg out of nest #6.
Lynda

June 28, 2009

Nothing to report
Lynda

June 27, 2009

Today really is Saturday and we had nest #16 at marker 66 with a crawl of 34″. Everett and Joy finally found the eggs after digging a hole any tourist would be proud of.
Lynda

June 26, 2009

The turtles are still checking Lynda’s schedule. We had nest #14, 34″ crawl at marker 72.1 and nest #15, 36″ crawl at marker 77.2 (east end of the Villas). Also five false crawls of 35″, 36″, and three at 34″.
Lynda

June 25, 2009

We had three false crawls this morning of 34″, 35″ and 38″. Two were in the Baptists and one just west of the Lighthouse. At least they know we have a beach down here even though they didn’t lay.
Lynda

June 24, 2009

Again nothing to report

June 23, 2009

Nothing to report.
Ev

June 22, 2009

We had nest #12 at marker 79.2 in front of the Villas again, with a 33″ crawl. We moved 96 eggs back from the high tide line.

Also nest #13 at the Pier with a 34″ crawl. This was also moved to Mercer St. and had 123 eggs.

Last night around 10 pm Oak Island police called to say a turtle was laying a nest at the Villas. By the time we got there she was covering it up and throwing sand, then a large crowd watched her go back into the water. It was a first for Everett and I and it was truly amazing.
Lynda

June 21, 2009

Happy Fathers Day but it would be happier if we’d had a nest.
Lynda

June 20, 2009

No activity today.

June 19, 2009

Nest #11 came in last night with a 34″ crawl at marker 65.5
Ev

June 18, 2009

We had nest #10 today with a 30″ crawl at marker 63.2. She crawled up into the dunes to lay.
Lynda

June 17, 2009

Nothing to report

Also, remember the Caswell Beach Turtle Watch merchandise:

Tee Shirts, Hats, Stuffed Turtles, & Prints
Available at
Caswell Beach Town Hall
1100 Caswell Beach Road
Monday- Friday 8:00 To 4:30
All proceeds are used to support Our Program

Thank You

June 16, 2009

Wet & Rainy Tuesday – One 36″ false crawl.
Ev

June 15, 2009

Nothing to report today

June 14, 2009

Two nests this morning, #8 at marker 65.7 with a 32″ crawl and #9 at marker 79.5 (the Villas again) with a 38″ crawl. Also a false crawl of 33″.

Joy found eggs for the first time in nest #9. She will have a big smile on her face the whole week.
Lynda

June 13, 2009

More good news with nest #7 at marker 72 with a 38″ crawl. Three false crawls of 40″, 36″ and 37″.
Lynda

June 12, 2009

The turtles are back!

We had one nest at the end of Mercer St. with a 34″ crawl. It had been dug into by a fox or dog and we lost 11 eggs. She came up on the beach and crawled a long way parallel to the water before she laid.

There were four false crawls all 35″.
Lynda

June 11, 2009

Nothing to report.
Ev

June 10, 2009

No activity.

To answer a question a lot are asking – we don’t believe the dredging has anything to do with the number of nests, the numbers are low everywhere.

June 9, 2009

Nothing to report

June 8, 2009

No activity again this morning

Here is a picture of nest 4 tracks taken by Barbara Burrell. This is what we’re looking for in the mornings.

Turtle-Track-picture-small

June 7, 2009

Nothing to report

June 6, 2009

Again, nothing to report.

June 5, 2009

Nothing to report.

June 4, 2009

No nest this morning. A fox tried to get into #4 but the flat wire stopped it from digging.
Lynda

June 3, 2009

Nothing to report.
Ev

June 2, 2009

No nest today – how do the turtles know when Ev is patrolling?
Lynda

June 1, 2009

We had nest #5 at marker 54.4 in the Baptists Assembly with a crawl of 32″. Also a false crawl of 35″.
Lynda

May 31, 2009

Nest 3 at marker 67 (600 block) with 35″ crawl and nest 4, 38″ crawl at marker 79 just yards away from #1.
Lynda

May 30, 2009

No nest but one false crawl of 35″.
Lynda

May 29, 2009

We had TWO nests this morning, one at the end of Mercer Street and one at 79.2 (west end of the Villas).

If you’re out on the beach you will see that we’ve put flat wire around the cages with white stakes and yellow tape. If we put habanero pepper out we will put warning signs up.

Keep ’em coming!
Lynda

May 28, 2009

Nothing to report.
Ev

May 27, 2009

Different riders, same result – no turtles but the alligator has moved on down to the Baptists Assembly.
Lynda

May 26, 2009

Still no activity
Lynda

May 25, 2009

False alarm this morning as the tracks we found belonged to an alligator that roamed in and out of the ocean for about half a mile. We didn’t see it though.
Lynda

May 24, 2009

Still no nest.
Lynda

May 23, 2009

Again no activity.
Lynda

May 22, 2009

Still no nest. For those of us who are getting anxious, records show the latest date for a first nest was June 10th in 2004 – let’s hope we don’t have to wait that long.
Lynda

May 21, 2009

Again nothing to report.
Lynda

May 20, 2009

No nest this morning but there were jellyfish which, according to Tom A., means the turtles are right behind.
Lynda

May 19, 2008

Nothing to report.
Ev

May 18, 2009

Cold, wet and no turtles or crawls.

May 17, 2009

Nothing to report.
Ev

May 16, 2009

Nothing to report.
Ev

May 15, 2009

Nothing to report.
Ev

May 14, 2009

Nothing to report.

May 13, 2009

Nothing to report
Lynda

May 12, 2009

Nothing to report again.
Lynda

May 11, 2009

Nothing to report this morning.
Lynda

May 10, 2009

No activity this morning.

Last night we had a dead turtle east of the Lighthouse with a carapace length of 26″. It was too big to bury by hand and was dragged up to the dune line and painted. Chuck – please bury it tomorrow.

Thanks,
Lynda

May 9, 2009

Quiet morning, nothing to report.
Ev

May 8, 2009

Unfortunately the only thing we have to report is a dead turtle on the beach in front of the parking lot. It was small, around 15″ long, and had obviously been dead for a while. Let’s hope for better news soon.
Lynda

May 7, 2009

No turtle activity but a copperhead close to the water. Chuck came and took care of it, he also removed the alligator yesterday and put it in a pond on the golf course. Enough with the other wildlife – where are the turtles?
Lynda

May 6, 2009

Sadly the turtle we sent to Topsail died around 2 am. Still we did the best we could. No nest this morning, just the alligator again in front of the lighthouse.
Lynda

May 5, 2009

No turtle activity again, just lightning and an alligator. Mother Nature is playing games with us.

Around 8 pm we got a call from the police that an injured turtle was on the beach at the public parking area. She (I want to think) was found by vacationers out for a walk. She had a boat strike wound on the carapace and was covered in barnacles and algae but was lifting her head and moving her front flippers. We wrapped her in towels and got her in the truck. She weighed around 80 to 100 lbs. We drove to 421 outside Wilmington where a Hospital volunteer from Wrightsville Beach met us and she is now on her way to the Turtle Hospital in Topsail. Let’s hope she makes it, we’ll keep you informed.
Lynda & Ev

May 4, 2009

No turtle activity but we did find an injured bird and called the rescue lady.
Lynda

May 3, 2009

Again nothing to report this morning.
Lynda & Ev

May 1, 2009

Turtle season is here again – no activity this morning. The beach looks great, lots more room for turtles to nest.
Lynda & Ev