Wednesday Night:
THANKS to the gentleman who alerted us to a very small and weak hatchling in the surf. The hatchling was kept for observation overnight and released this morning. We are hopeful for the best!
Nest #44 had 2 more very strong hatchlings emerge at about 9:15 pm. Sneaky and Speedy crawled swiftly to the water!
Nest #38 boiled at 11:23 pm August 18, day 57. A hole appeared suddenly at 10:18 and 103 hatchlings emerged an hour and 5 minutes later. None of the turtles were disoriented. They all hurried to the sea en masse, with a respectful group of about twenty visitors watching under the bright moonlight. Team 1 was worried about the new street lamp at the lighthouse overflow parking lot, but the hatchlings were not distracted by it. Good news!
Thursday Morning:
Morning Patrol dodged the weather and made it back safely. Rain can make it difficult to see progress, but Nest #48 appeared to have had 1-3 hatchlings emerge overnight.
Nest #38 had a large crab hole.
Several other nests had very small crab holes.
Please be on the lookout for stray hatchlings that may emerge during rain storms and call us if any are found. Thanks so much!
P.S. No pictures today as all events happened after dark!
This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 21ST03)