2023 Turtle Season

  • CBTW’s 2023 Green Turtle Nest

    We at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch were very excited earlier this season when we suspected one of our new nests (#66) was a Green Turtle nest (see July 11 post).

    Our suspicions were correct! We were so excited to see the very first hatchling so that we could confirm the status of this nest!  It was a beautiful hatchling!!  Green Turtles have a very distinct markings. The turtles trickled out over a couple of days.  Then the King Tides arrived and the storm was approaching.  We were given permission by NCWRC to emergency excavate emerged nests early (we need this approval for any variance to their standard regulations), so we did so at almost dark on Monday night before the storm hit. 

    We were sad to find that not all of the hatchlings made it out of this special nest due to the heat.  Here is the story of our Green Turtle nest!

  • October 16, 2023 – Nest #93 Inventory

    Whew!  Deep Breath…

    Nest #93 was inventoried by Team 0 + this morning.  One more hatchling emerged overnight and left a really cute loop in his tracks!  The three live hatchlings that were brought out of their warm nest were probably shocked by the cool 52 degree temps.  All three had slight flipper issues from being compressed in the nest, but they still had a lot of spunk!

    Nest #93 Inventory:
    Hatched Egg Shells – 103
    Unhatched Eggs – 10
    Live in Nest at Inventory -3

    This closes out our 2023 Nesting Season!  Thank you all for your support!  We will have some preliminary statistics in the next few days, but it will be a while before we receive all of our DNA data.  We will keep you updated!

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • October 15, 2023 – Nest #85 Inventory

    Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Team 8 inventoried Nest #85 this afternoon.  It was Day 78 for this nest, which was over-washed for the first time 3 days after it was laid.  After this initial event, it was over-washed 8 more times before the Sept/Oct. King Tides and then a LOT more (we stopped counting).  Sadly, the excavated eggs showed development somewhere between Day 39-42. There were 108 unhatched eggs.  

    We have some of the DNA results that show this Mama also laid Nests #13 and #91.  We will have to wait for more results to see if she laid more in between!

    The DNA data is coming in all mixed up.  We have 1-30 minus #3, 82-91 minus #84.  We will let you know when more comes in!

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • October 11, 2023 – Wednesday #92 Inventory

    Last night was a beautiful night for an inventory!  It was a small but successful nest!

    Nest #92 Inventory:
    Hatched Egg Shells – 64
    Unhatched Eggs – 4
    Pipped – 0
    Live – 1
    Dead – 0

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • October 6, 2023 – #91: A Great Hatch!

    We inventoried Nest #91 on this busy King Mackerel Tournament opening day!  This nest hatched during the night-early morning hours October 2nd-3rd with lots of hatchling tracks leading to the high tide line. The bugs had chased everyone off the beach that evening, so the turtles emerged as nature intended (without an audience). It was a great hatch!

    Nest #91 Inventory:
    Hatched Egg Shells – 99
    Unhatched Eggs – 7
    Nothing else

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • October 3, 2023 – Nest #78, 75th Day

    We Inventoried Nest #78 last evening, the 75th Day.  The King Tides definitely had an impact on the nest.  There were 84 unhatched, partially developed eggs.  One of those had been split open, probably by a crab.  It was not developed enough to have pipped on its own.  Team 3 rallied through and did what needed to be done!  Thank you, Team 3!

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • September 28, 2023 – Nesting Site Hatch

    We had a surprise yesterday afternoon. Our last Nesting Site showed evidence of an emergence. A Nesting Site is an area where the Mama spent a good amount of time, but the nest chamber was not located by our patrol. Mama came in on August 4th.

    Our best guess is that the nest hatched during the rains on Friday into Saturday. After digging an arms length deep, our patrol found the nest. That makes this Nest #96. Unfortunately they found many deceased hatchlings. Sadly the heavy rains must have stopped their progress out of the nest. Nature isn’t always kind.

    Nest #96 Inventory
    Hatched Egg Shells – 107
    Unhatched Eggs – 3
    Pipped – 0
    Live in Nest – 0
    Dead in Nest -66

    We choose to focus on the 41 hatchlings that emerged!

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • September 27, 2023 – Wednesday News!

    It was chilly and quiet out there this morning.  

    We had 2 successful inventories last evening for the 2 nests that hatched during Friday-Saturday’s rain.

    Nest #87 Inventory
    Hatched Egg Shells – 61
    Unhatched Eggs – 8
    Pipped – 0
    Live – 0
    Dead – 0
    + 2 small spacer eggs

    Nest #89 Inventory
    Hatched Egg Shells – 105
    Unhatched Eggs – 8
    Pipped – 0
    Live – 2
    Dead – 0

    Nest 87:

    Nest 89:

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • September 23, 2023 – Ophelia Update

    Looks like we made it through the storm! It was cold out there this morning and there was no damage to the remaining nests!

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • September 19, 2023 – Quiet Nights

    It has been very quiet on the beach the last couple of nights! The rain the night before could have erased any traces of activity, so hard to tell. There have been gorgeous sunsets and sunrises, though!

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • September 17, 2023 – Sunday Surprise

    After several days with a crater on top, several nights of sitting until 11pm or after, much speculation about whether or not it hatched during the rain early Wednesday morning and finding flies/ants at the nest this morning, Nest #82 was excavated as soon as the team could arrive.  The nest HAD in fact hatched without our knowledge and we were babysitting empty shells!  Thanks to Team 5 for your diligence during the buggy nights and quick response this morning!

    Nest #82 Inventory:
    Hatched Egg Shells – 91
    Unhatched Eggs – 18
    Nothing else.  

    That is all the news this morning.

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • September 15, 2023 – Friday Update

    It was nice to see the stars again last night.  Many visitors were out hoping to see some turtle hatch, but they just weren’t ready to come out (while we all were there)!  The surge from the storm way off shore brought the tides up close to many nests hours after high tide.  Nest #85 has been unlucky with overwash since the week after it was laid.  Sadly, last night was no exception.

    We were concerned about Nest #84 because of an issue with Ants on top of the nest and going into the center.  We’ve never seen such an invasion!  We kept sweeping them away, but they always returned.  A volunteer did some research and we put cornstarch around the perimeter.  It seemed to help a lot on the outside of the nest.  After consulting with our State Coordinator at NCWRC, it was determined an emergency excavation could be done as soon as a fair number of hatchlings emerged.  Excavating a nest before they are developmentally ready could be life threatening for the turtles.  Fortunately, the nest hatched overnight!  We did the emergency excavation this morning and were able to save 26 hatchlings from ant attack!  1 baby was covered with ants and had to be immediately rinsed off and set aside for recovery.  The stats were devastating.  I don’t know how we were not attacked ourselves, but we did not get even 1 ant bite.

    Nest #84 Inventory:
    Hatched Eggs – 65
    Unhatched Eggs – 26
    Pipped – 7
    Live – 26 (1 badly attacked)
    Dead – 26 (many covered in ants)

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • September 14, 2023 – Thursday Thrills!

    Wednesday night had lots of beautiful distant lightning and cool breezes.  We all went in when the wind shifted, bugs came out and the rain got closer.

    Nest #83 Inventory:
    Hatched Egg Shells – 95
    Unhatched Eggs – 15
    Pipped – 0
    Live – 3

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • September 13, 2023 – Wednesday Tidbits

    We really are starting to slow down!  Last night was beautiful with the lightning show (the storm was in Florence and Lumberton), Starlink Satellite Train (22 lights) and the cool breeze.  We have 11 nests still incubating on Caswell Beach.  The hatchlings will probably take a few more days to incubate than the ones pre-Idalia.  The high tideline is much lower now, so hopefully anything swells comes our way from Hurricane Lee won’t be a problem!

    Nest #79 Inventory:
    Hatched Egg Shells – 41
    Unhatched Eggs – 24
    Pipped – 3
    Spacer Eggs – 2 tiny ones

    Nest #79

    Morning Activity

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • September 12, 2023 – Sunny Tuesday

    We had another beautiful evening for the inventories last night! There were no new nest hatchlings to report from the inventories.

    Nest #83 had no activity last night but a few more tracks in the runway this morning.

    Nest #73 Inventory:
    Hatched Egg Shells – 82
    Unhatched Eggs – 15
    Pipped – 0
    Live – 1
    Dead – 0

    Nest #80 Inventory:
    Hatched Egg Shells – 71
    Unhatched Eggs – 51
    Pipped – 0
    Live – 0
    Dead – 1

    Nest #81 Inventory:
    Hatched Egg Shells – 100
    Unhatched Eggs – 19
    Pipped – 2
    Live – 2
    Dead – 0

    Nest #73

    Nest 80

    Nest 81

    Morning Activity

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • September 10, 2023 – Inventory Updates

    Nest #75 Inventory (last night – We had a sweet family from Kentucky observe!)
    Hatched Egg Shells – 80
    Unhatched Eggs – 1w
    Pipped -1

    Nest #77 Inventory (this morning)
    Hatched Egg Shells – 98
    Unhatched Eggs – 28

    Nest #75

    Nest #77

    Morning Activity


    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • August 18, 2023 – Friday Update

    It was a quiet and inactive night last night, except for the crabs.  Nest #37 had 4 egg shells pulled out.  

    Our Inventories in the last 24 hours have yielded very different results.  Weather, tides and the type of sand can all play a part, not to mention the genetics of the turtle parents.  

    Nest #9 Inventory:  Thursday Evening
    (Badly overwashed by King Tides, repeatedly)
    Hatched Egg Shells – 0
    Unhatched Eggs- 113

    Nest #30 Inventory:  Thursday Evening
    Hatched Egg Shells – 50
    Unhatched Eggs – 38
    Pipped – 0
    Live – 1
    Dead – 0

    Nest #34 Inventory:  Thursday Evening
    Hatched Egg Shells – 127
    Unhatched Eggs -20
    Pipped – 0
    Live – 0
    Dead – 0

    Nest #18 Inventory:  Friday Morning (Overwashed by King Tides)
    Hatched Egg Shells –  7
    Unhatched – 65
    Pipped – 0
    Live – 0
    Dead – 0

    Nest #9 Inventory
    Nest #30 Inventory
    Nest #34 Inventory

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • August 17, 2023 – YIPEE! We have Nest #93!

    Looks like our False Crawl from yesterday returned and laid today!

    She tricked us by evidently turning towards the east before she dug her chamber.  Yay, Barbara for finding the eggs!

    Nests #35 & #37 had some emergence overnight.  It is hard to know how many with the rain drops from the storm.  Nest #37 had a late arrival during patrol this morning.  He was a strong one!

    Nest #28 Inventory (Wednesday Evening)
    Hatched Eggs – 60
    Unhatched Eggs – 4
    Pipped – 0
    Live – 0
    Dead – 0

    Nest #93
    Morning Activity

    Nest #28 Inventory

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • August 16, 2023 – Windy Wednesday and another False Crawl!

    We had another False Crawl on the East End this morning.  She crawled up an escarpment, up a dune slope and slid down to crawl back to the water.  Goodness, that was a lot of work!

    Some of the nests gained sand during the high winds yesterday.  There were no nest emergence.

    Nest #20 Inventory (last evening)
    Hatched Egg Shells – 100
    Unhatched Eggs – 18
    Pipped – 0
    Live – 1
    Dead – 0

    Nest #33 Inventory (this morning)
    Hatched Egg Shells – 98
    Unhatched Eggs – 25
    Pipped – 1
    Live – 0
    Dead – 0
    Live – 0
    Dead – 0

    False Crawl
    Nest #20
    Nest #33

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • August 15, 2023 – A Late Nesting Year?

    We had another False Crawl today.  We hope she will come back. Our Mama’s are definitely nesting later this season!

    Interesting fact: 
    In 2020 we had a nest on August 22, 2020.  It hatched on October 29th with 92% successfully hatched!  We can’t wait to see how this season ends!


    Nest #20 had 4-5 more hatchling tracks this morning.
    Nest #33 had 1 more hatchling track this morning.

    Nest #19 Inventory (1-2 slight overwash from tide)
    Hatched Egg Shells – 55
    Unhatched Eggs – 24
    Pipped – 0
    Live – 1
    Dead -0

    Nest #27 Inventory
    Hatched Egg Shells – 110
    Unhatched Eggs – 7
    Pipped – 2
    Live – 2
    Dead – 0 

    Nest #19 Inventory

    Nest #27 Inventory

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • August 14, 2023 – Nest #92!

    Just when you think you’re through, we have Nest #92!  What a surprise!
    Nest #92 was laid high and dry in a safe location. Crawl WIdth:  78cm/31″

    Nest #34 had some turtles emerge last night between 8:30 – 11:30 with Team 4 present.  They were so very happy to see hatchlings!

    We had 2 inventories last night and 1 this morning.

    Nest #26
    Hatched Egg Shells – 107
    Unhatched Eggs – 26
    Pipped – 2
    Live – 1
    Dead – 2

    Nest #31
    Hatched Egg Shells – 85
    Unhatched Eggs – 13
    Pipped – 0
    Live –  2
    Dead – 0

    Nest #32
    Hatched Egg Shells – 96
    Unhatched Eggs – 16
    Pipped – 2
    Live – 13
    Dead – 4

    Nest #92

    Nest #26 Inventory

    Nest #31 Inventory

    Nest #34 Inventory

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • August 13, 2023 – Super-busy Summer Saturday!

    Saturday Inventories:
    No new crawls to report.  Laying may have ended for the season. Today was very busy attending to 6! inventories, 2 morning and 4 evening.  The evening had large crowds.  SPECIAL THANKS to the teams who came and assisted at the evening inventories! 

    Saturday/Sunday Hattches:
    Last night we had 3 nests with some emergence!

    Nest #19 had 4 hatchlings emerge with Team 3 present.  3 were disoriented by a street light.

    Nest #33 had 84 hatchlings emerge at 10:49 with Team 10 present.  They moved very quickly as a group down the center of runway and straight to the water. A few stragglers trying to keep up with the group headed back up the ramp but eventually found their way to the water.

    Nest #28 had 85-90 hatchlings emerge at 12:18 am with Team 5 present and some happy visitors.

    Inventories in occurrence order:

    Nest #17  Inventory (see Yesterday’s Post)
    Hatched Egg Shells – 90
    Unhatched – 18
    Pipped – 2
    Live – 0
    Dead – 0

    Nest #14  Inventory (see Yesterday’s Post)
    Hatched Egg Shells – 118
    Unhatched – 2
    Pipped – 0
    Live – 2
    Dead – 1

    Nest #15  Inventory
    Hatched Egg Shells – 131
    Unhatched – 13
    Pipped – 0
    Live – 6
    Dead – 6

    Nest #23  Inventory
    Hatched Egg Shells – 116
    Unhatched – 11
    Pipped – 0
    Live – 1
    Dead – 1

    Nest #25  Inventory
    Hatched Egg Shells – 137
    Unhatched – 5
    Pipped – 0
    Live – 0
    Dead – 1

    Nest #16  Inventory
    Hatched Egg Shells – 15
    Unhatched – 12
    Pipped – 2
    Live – 0
    Dead – 11
    Very Small Spacer Eggs – 11
    There were only 29 eggs total! 40 with spacers!

    Nest #15:
    Nest #23:
    Nest #25:
    Nest #16:

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).


    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • August 12, 2023 – Wedding Crasher Turtles!

    Friday Night:
    We learned from the DNA results of Nest #8 Mama that she typically lays small clutches of eggs.  This nest had a total of 50.

    Nest #8 Inventory
    Hatched Eggs – 44
    Unhatched Egg – 6 with an additional 2 small spacer eggs
    Pipped – 0
    Live – 0
    Dead – 0

    Nest #20 had 104 hatchlings boil out at 9:28 pm.  Most of them decided to try and attend a Wedding at the Lazy Turtle restaurant before heading out to sea.  We are thankful for the help of about 10 Turtle Ambassadors who searched the beach to help locate the turtles! 

    Saturday Morning:
    Nest #14 Inventory
    Hatched Eggs – 118
    Unhatched Eggs – 2
    Pipped – 0
    Live – 2
    Dead – 1

    Nest #17 Inventory
    Hatched Eggs – 90
    Unhatched Eggs – 18
    Pipped – 2
    Live – 0
    Dead – 0

    Nests #29, #31 and #32 had a few more hatchling tracks each.

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).


    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • August 11, 2023 – More Hatchings!

    Thursday Night:

    Nest #19 hatched last night with Team 4 presents, Team 3 joining in to help and many beach visitors!  The hatchling scout came out first and went straight to the water.  The other 52 followed after and hour of waiting.  Several of those were very disoriented.  

    We were called at 10:10 about Nest #32 hatching.  The beach visitors watched  30-40 hatchlings emerge.  Some of the team returned in time to see a few go to the water.  We are grateful these Turtle Ambassadors called our number on the nest sign!!!

    Friday Morning:

    Nest #27 hatched overnight with LOTS of hatchling tracks!  There was no evidence of activity when the team left for the night. 

    Nest #17 had a few more hatchling tracks this morning.

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).


    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • August 10, 2021 – Nest #91!

    Never say you think you’re done!  We have Nest #91!  

    The nest was laid in a great location.  We were able to talk with several visitors and explain the process of locating the eggs and the DNA collection.

    Crawl Width:  83cm/32.5″

    Also this morning, Nest #31 decided to hatch at about 6:00 am.  We had not yet arrived, but were able to see a few hatchlings make it to the water.  Thanks to the beach visitors who watched over them until we arrived!  A sweet preschooler was ecstatic to see the baby turtles!

    Nest #15 had 5 more hatchlings emerge at about 9:05 last night with Team 2 present and many visitors. The turtles went straight to the water!

    Nest #26 boiled at about 9:50 pm last night with Team 7 present along with about 50 visitors!  They saw 85 hatchlings in the boil and 2 more before they left for the night.  

    Walking Patrol found an empty egg shell up on a dune.  We checked out a false crawl area, but were unable to see evidence of anything disturbed.  It’s a mystery!

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • Leucistic Turtles

    The other evening we had a couple of hatchlings that needed a little rest before they went out to sea. One was Leucistic. Leucism is a lack of pigment. The lack of pigment does not affect the eyes like in Albinism.

    These are special creatures to behold!

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • August 9, 2023 – 5 Nests Hatched!

    It was a busy night for turtle babies!

    Nest #25 boiled with Team 9 present between 9:30-9:44.  There were 127 hatchlings in under 15 minutes!  It was low tide and a long walk, but they did it!  A few more emerged over night.

    Nest #15 boiled at 10:00 with 119 hatchlings.  Unfortunately, about half of them were disoriented due to bright lights.  The team worked hard to see that all babies made it to the ocean!  Again, a few more emerged over night.

    Nest #14 boiled with Team 6 present and MANY Turtle Ambassadors! 127 hatchlings went to the ocean with 2 being disoriented by a street light. The visitors were thrilled to see the emergence and hear all the information Team 6 had to share!

    Nest #17 and #23 also emerged during the night!

    Our Morning Patrol filled in a large hole.  It wasn’t very wide, but was almost as deep as a rake!  Very dangerous!

    It appears that our Mamas may have gone back out to sea.  We haven’t had a new nest or crawl in 5 days.

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • August 8, 2023 – Inventories, Nest #8 Emergence, Storm Issues, Oh My!

    Our monitoring teams had to leave their posts last night when the storm was approaching in order to stay safe!  The wind was still blowing out there this morning and some nest runways had a lot of sand blown in and buckets up in the dunes.  Our Morning Patrol and assigned teams will be checking all nests today.

    We also have several inventories to report on – thanks to all the turtle supporters that joined us!

    Thursday Evening Inventories:

    Nest #1
    Hatched Egg Shells – 72
    Unhatched Eggs- 27
    Pipped – 0
    Live – 16
    Dead – 0

    Nest #12:
    Hatched Egg Shells – 100
    Unhatched Eggs- 21
    Pipped – 0
    Live – 0
    Dead – 1

    Nest #21:
    Hatched Egg Shells – 100
    Unhatched Eggs- 25
    Pipped – 0
    Live – 8
    Dead -1

    Nest #22:
    Hatched Egg Shells – 110
    Unhatched Eggs- 14
    Pipped – 0
    Live – 1
    Dead – 3

    The Live from Nest #22 was LEUCISTIC! Leucism is a lack of pigment.  The turtle has dark eyes, not pink like an Albino.

    Nest #8 had 26 hatchlings before Team 8 left the beach.  +1 was added overnight.

    Nest #32 has activity under the sand on DAY 48!  It was a relocated nest.

    We had some awesome Turtle Ambassadors last night who are the Grandchildren of Jane and Milton Reece (former coordinators for CBTW).  The Goodall’s found a hatchling in a tidal pool and called us right away.  The hatchling was released in the water, beyond the breakers.  They are continuing their Grandparent’s legacy!

    Nest Inventories!

    (Includes our Daytime Mama Nest)

    Nest #8 and #32 Activity, Morning Update

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).


    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • August 7, 2023 – WILD Nest #90!

    WOW! “Eagle Eye” Susan discovered a WILD nest today!  We will be checking our False Crawl data to see if this was one we couldn’t find or if it’s one we missed completely.  It was on the East End just over an escarpment in a badly eroded area.  When a wild nest is found, it is immediately excavated and inventoried.

    Nest #90 Inventory:
    Hatched Egg Shells – 126
    Unhatched Eggs -2
    No Pipped
    No Dead
    Live Hatchlings – 6

    Nest #16 had 2 hatchling tracks this morning.

    Nest #22 had a few more hatchlings to emerge.

    Our last nest was 3 days ago, but we will keep checking for more!

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • August 6, 2023 – #24 Kemp’s Ridley Inventory

    The Kemp’s Ridley Nest #24 Inventory took a very long time last night.  There were 11 hatchlings stuck under the damp sand that needed time to acclimate to being out of the nest.  Timothy, Fred, Gummy, Cutie Pie, Honey Love and Oreo were just some of the names given to the hatchlings from our cute observers.  The first 6 walked a long way down the runway and were then given the Turtle Taxi to the wet sand.  They were encouraged by the visitors as they crawled slowly and steadily until they hit the water and went out to sea.  The last 5 were very tired and less eager to make the trip.  They were taxied to the water’s edge and eventually made it into the water.  We wish them all the best of luck!  Thanks to all the Turtle Ambassadors and CBTW Volunteers for the help prior to the inventory!  Thanks also to the visitors for all the great questions and support!

    Nest #24 Inventory Results:
    Hatched Egg Shells – 88
    Unhatched Eggs – 7
    Pipped – 7
    Dead – 1
    Live – 11
    Pieces – A handful
    Relocated Eggs – 103

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).


    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • August 6, 2023 – Sunday Update

    Last night Nest #1 had 1 more hatchling to appear and make it to the water with a large crowd of beach visitors.  He started making his appearance at noon, but smartly waited until after sunset!

    There was no other turtle activity.  

    Sadly, a large Hammerhead was found washed up at the Public Parking beach.  Marine Fisheries was called.  It’s uncertain how the shark died, but they commented that sometimes these sharks fight so hard when caught that they don’t survive.

    We had a total of 3 beach holes reported last night and this morning.  Team 4 filled in a hole near the OKI Villas (no picture), Team 5 filled in a hole in the 200 block, and then this morning a hole at the Public Parking.  Thank you, Teams!  

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • August 5, 2023 – BONUS: Nest #11 Inventory!

    There is so much going on that we almost forgot the INCREDIBLE inventory results from Nest #11!!!

    Hatched Egg Shells – 140 (Yes, you read that right!)
    Unhatched Eggs – 9
    Pipped – 1
    Dead – 2
    Live – 2

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).


    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • August 5, 2023 – Saturday Surprises!

    It was another busy night on Caswell Beach. The rain sent many back to their cars, but some decided to tough it out.  The high tides were lower, but Nest #9 suffered badly and Nest #85 was overwashed.

    Working to protect our nests from King Tide!

    Best News:  Nest #1 finally hatched!  Team 3 sat through 2 sessions of rain and they got to see 3 babies emerge from the nest and make it to the ocean!  That’s dedication!  There was 1 lone fella in the runway this morning with flipper issues.  We took him down to the wet sand where he crawled with his back flippers.  Later we checked back to make sure he had not been washed up again and we found 42+ hatchling tracks in the wet sand!  The sun was shining just right at that time for us to see them!  YAY, NEST #1!

    Nest #22 boiled at 9:25pm with Team 1 seeing 78 hatchlings make it to the ocean!  No other tracks that we could tell this morning.

    Nest #21 also hatched overnight!  The runway had lots and lots of tracks! 

    These two nests were laid beside each other on the same day and they hatched the same night!  How cool is that?

    No new crawls or nests today.  The tide was VERY LOW this morning.  Let’s hope these next nests will hatch at high tide!  It’s a long walk in some areas.

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).


    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • August 4, 2023 – Nest #89!

    Last night was a busy night! It was wet and windy out this morning.  The tide has started receding and nest tops looked good.

    Caswell Beach Turtle Watch morning patrol braving the wind and rain!

    Nest #2 Inventory
    Hatched Egg Shells – 66, Unhatched Eggs – 45, Pipped – 0, Dead -1, Live -0

    Nest #5 Inventory
    Hatched Egg Shells – 124, Unhatched Eggs – 21, Pipped – 1, Dead -, Live -0

    Nest #12 hatched at a full boil at 9:46.  93 hatchlings emerged with Team 5 in attendance.

    We got a call at 11:00 PM letting us know that Nest #10 was hatchling with a full boil.  (Faithful Team 2 had gone home for the night as there were no signs of activity.)  When we arrived, beach visitors had seen 81 hatchlings.  6 more emerged while we were there.  We were told that about 1/3 of them got disoriented, possibly by a porch light on a nearby deck.  We appreciate the help of the beach visitors and are thankful they called us!

    Nest #24 had 1 hatchling track in the runway.  We didn’t see any other signs of emergence in any other nests.

    We had 2 fairly obvious False Crawls, one nesting site and Nest #89 today.  

    The crawl for the nesting site had a good time discrepancy, but we just couldn’t find the eggs.  We marked it and will keep an on it.

    Nest #89 was laid high and dry.  
    Crawl Width:  102cm/40″

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).


    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations

  • Kemp’s Ridley Mid-Day Hatch!

    BIG NEWS!  Caswell Beach’s Kemp’s Ridley Nest started hatching at about 9:30 this morning!!! New Volunteer Mary Beth and her cousin Mary Ann were out walking when a family alerted them to some turtle hatchlings.  IT WAS DAY 49 and had not been greened yet!  They quickly worked together with Turtle Ambassadors, the Williford family, to set up the runway and shield the turtles from the hot sun. Counting was a bit difficult, but we know there were more than 57. There were 103 eggs in the nest.  We are grateful for all the families that helped shadow the hatchlings!!

    Kemp’s Ridley Daytime Hatch


    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations.

  • August 3, 2023 – Nest #88, King Tides, Nest #4 Inventory, Kemp’s News and More!

    It’s been a busy 24 hours!
    SEE THE BIG NEWS ABOUT OUR KEMP’S RIDLEY NEST HERE!

    Kemp’s Ridley Daytime Hatch

    We also had Nest #88!  Mama laid just a tiny bit over last night’s tide line.  We relocated 99 eggs, still a good sized clutch for the end of the season!

    King Tides reached a few nests again last night, but those Teams did an amazing job minimizing the damage!  Great work, y’all!!

    Nest #2 had one more hatchling emerge while the team was there last night.

    Nest #1 has a nice low spot!  FINALLY on Day 74!

    Nest #4 Inventory – Wednesday Evening
    Hatched Egg Shells – 92
    Unhatched Eggs- 39
    Pipped –  9 
    Live – 9
    Dead – 0
    Pieces – 2
    Relocated Eggs – 142

    Nest #88
    Nest #4 Inventory

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

    Want to help? Please consider donating to our efforts to protect sea turtles at Caswell Beach Turtle Watch Donations.

  • August 2, 2023 – King Tide!

    There were no crawls or nest emergence overnight.  

    Nests #13, #17 and #18 had some degree of overwash at last night’s high tide. It was a 5.3″, and we expect the same or slighty more for tomorrow night.

    The 3 teams worked hard to prevent as much damage as they could.  Thanks to our young Super Woman helper for bringing her shovel and super powers to help us protect a nest.

    Now we wait and hope for the best!

    Nest #6 Inventory 8/1
    Hatched Egg Shells -125
    Unhatched Eggs – 4
    Pipped Eggs – 4
    Live Hatchlings – 3
    Dead Hatchlings – 1
    Few pieces

    Nest #7 Inventory 7/31
    Hatched Egg Shells -110
    Unhatched Eggs – 11
    Pipped Eggs – 0
    Live Hatchlings – 4
    Dead Hatchlings – 3
    Lots of pieces

  • August 1, 2023 – Lots of Turtle Action!

    We had 1 False Crawl (same location as yesterday’s) and 1 Nest.  They had the same crawl width.

    Nest #87 had to be relocated from just over yesterday’s King Tide line to the dune line.  Patrol had visitors Madison and L’rae watch the process.
    There were 67 eggs + several spacers.
    Crawl Width:  90cm/35″

    Other Updates:
    Nest #11 had evidence of a good emergence overnight.  Lots of hatchling tracks!
    Nest #10 had it’s first emergence with 1-2 hatchling tracks.
    Nest #2 had 4 more hatchling tracks and some crab activity.
    Nest #5 had 1 more hatchling track.
    Nest #17 had a slight overwash during yesterday evening’s King Tide.

    Our Nest #4 Emergence Video on Facebook has been very popular!

    Busy times are here!

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • July 31, 2023 – Multiple Hatchings!

    We are happy to report that Nest #2 and Nest #5 hatched at some point during the storms  last night!  Thank you to those CBTW teams who put in so many hours keeping watch.  We are sorry you missed the emergence, but glad the hatchlings finally appeared!

    Nest #4 had a hatchling attacked by a crab.  

    There was also a False Crawl.  Mama crawled up to and around Nest #81 and decided that spot was already occupied.  We hope she returns tonight!

    The King Tides arrive Aug 1-3 and again on August 27-31.  The East End escarpment is eroding fast!  We hope Nest #50 will be OK!

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • July 30, 2023 – Nest #4 Boil & Nest #86!

    Nest #4 partially boiled last night at around 8:25 pm. – early enough to see it in daylight!  The 61 hatchlings went straight to the water with the exception of 1 who made a few loops and turns along the way at the water’s edge.  It was over in less than 6 minutes!  It was a first for some new volunteers and several nest visitors!  We are glad our community had the rare opportunity to see a daylight boil! No new hatchling tracks were seen this morning.

    Nest #86 was laid in a safe and high location!
    Crawl Width:  90cm/35.5″

    Nest #4

    Nest #86

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • July 29, 2023 – #85 and a Hatching

    Nest #6 hatched sometime overnight with lots of hatchling tracks going towards the ocean!

    We were called last night by a Turtle Ambassador from Pinehurst, NC about a nesting mama. We arrived to see her lay, were able to check her for flipper tags and measure her carapace. Her carapace (shell) was 38 inches long and 35.8 inches wide! Getting this data is is important to turtle research. We were also happy to have another family from Long Island, NY observe the miracle. They have been coming to Caswell Beach for years and this was their first mama sighting! Our patrol marked the nest this morning! THANKS FOR THE CALL, Ambassadors!

    We are happy to have 85 nests on Caswell Beach now! Bonus, we had a beautiful rainbow out there this morning!

    *Last night’s pictures were taken with a Night Sight feature on the cell phones!

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • July 28, 2023 – #84 and a Hatching

    We had 1 False Crawl at the East End and 1 Nest that had to be relocated from the heavy escarpment area.  There are 2 nests in that area that could be in jeopardy and we didn’t want a third.

    Nest #84
    95 eggs relocated to a safer location
    Crawl Width:  104cm/41″

    The False Crawl width was 93cm/36.5″

    Nest #7 had a good number of hatchling tracks this morning.  They hatched sometime after Team 5 left for the night.  There was 1 straggler making his way down the runway when Patrol came by.  They saw him safely to the water.

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • July 27, 2017 – Nest #3 & #4 Activity

    We had no new crawls or nests this morning.

    The only emergence was 1 more hatchling from Nest #3 emerged overnight.  He had very strong  flipper prints!

    There was a big crowd at Nest #4 last night as a crater developed throughout the day.  The hatchlings are pipping out and getting ready for their appearance!  We had great education going on at all the nests!

    Team 10 excavated and inventoried Nest #3 early this morning. There were 6 live hatchlings trapped under heavy sand and hatched eggshells.  This was a relocated nest that contained 142 eggs.  The inventoried eggs did not add up to the number relocated, but there were a lot of shredded eggshell pieces.  Thank you, Team 10!

    Nest #3 Inventory:
    6 Live Hatchlings
    0 Dead Hatchlings
    3 Pipped Eggs (the turtles broke through the eggshell, but perished before emerging completely out of the shell).
    90 Hatched Eggshells
    35 Unhatched Eggs 
    LOTS of shredded pieces

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • July 25, 2023 – We have #83!

    We had 1 Nest, 0 False Crawls and no hatchling emergence overnight.  

    Nest #83 had to be relocated from a low area that floods.  There were 130 eggs.  Some were odd shaped yolkless eggs (spacers).  One looked like a candy cane!

    Nest #83
    Crawl Width: 98cm/38.5″

  • July 24, 2023 – Our First Hatch and 2 False Crawls!

    We had our first emergence at Nest #3 last night!

    CBTW Team 10 braved the thunderstorms, rain and bugs well into the evening. It is estimated that about 64 hatchlings emerged. We will continue to monitor the nest, and ask that ANY activity when a CWB Turtle Team member is not present be reported to the Caswell Beach Turtle Watch at 910-368-6323.

    Both false crawls were at the East Point and both with the same crawl width.  Interestingly enough, there were a lot of deer prints around.  Maybe they scared her off?

    Morning Patrol found a deceased juvenile Kemp’s Ridley sea turtle on Ft. Caswell’s beach. It was moderately decomposed, so it had been in the water a while.  Data was collected to be sent to the State and it was buried.  More and more juvenile Kemp’s are being seen in the waters off of our coast.  

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • July 23, 2023 – We have #80 & #81!

    We had 2 Nests this morning and 1 False Crawl. Both nests were laid safely. One decided to join forces with a Rescue Tube Station! Fortunately, the tube is still accessible.

    There were no hatchling emergences overnight.

    Nest #81
    Crawl Width:  106cm/41.7″

    Nest #82
    Crawl Width:  95cm/37.5″

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • July 22, 2023- Saturday Summary #80!

    Nest #80 had to be relocated from the East Point and there was a False Crawl nearby (could be the same Mama).  There is incredible erosion out there that has gotten worse in this last week from the tides and winds.  

    Nest #80 had 134 eggs relocated to a safer location.
    Crawl Width:  94cm/37″

    There were 4 False Crawls total, 2 of them had long crawls!

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • Are Red Lights Better for Sea Turtles?

    FACT:  Sea turtles DO see red lights.  The color and wavelength is not as disturbing to them as a white light but turtles do still respond to them.  The NCWRC guidelines state that no lights (red or otherwise) should be shined near or directly on a sea turtle mama, nest or hatchling. Avoiding use of these lights minimizes distraction and disorientation and helps them reach their intended destination quickly and successfully.

  • Do Flashlights Hurt Sea Turtles?

    Flashlights don’t HURT sea turtles. 

    FACT:  Flashlights do not physically harm sea turtles.  Sea turtles do not see well on land, they see bright and dark.  The bright white lights can distract them or scare them off.  This can cause a nesting turtle to return to the ocean without nesting or cause a hatchling to wander in the wrong direction away from the ocean.  Keeping our beaches as dark as possible is the best way we can ensure our turtles are successful in their journeys.

  • July 21, 2023 – Still Windy! #79

    CAN YOU SAY WINDY?  We were sandblasted this morning on morning patrol and the nests that have runways are full of sand!  There was no way to tell if any nests had cracks or depressions.  We had to be extra vigilant in searching for crawls as the tracks were very faint and hard to see.

    We had 5 False Crawls and 1 Nest.  4 of the False Crawls were similar crawl widths as the nest, so possibly the same Mama. 

    Nest #79 was laid in a safe location in low dunes.  The egg we used for DNA was an interesting shape! 

    Nest #79
    Crawl Width:  110cm/37.5″

    **Holden Beach had the first nest emergence last night for NC.  The nest was on Day 70.  Ocean Isle has a nest on Day 72 that hasn’t hatched, yet.  We may be waiting another week before we see anything on Caswell Beach!

    A few of the pictures today were taken last night of a cliff created by the rough surf on the East End. There has been significant beach erosion that is making this turtle season very challenging for both the turtles and our patrols.

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • New to Caswell Beach Turtle Watch?

    Hello Caswell Beach Turtle Friends. As we head into the busy part of turtle season, we wanted to take a moment to re-introduce ourselves and help inform our newer supporters.

    Caswell Beach Turtle Watch (CBTW) is a group of Volunteers formally trained and permitted by the @NC Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC), which in case you are not familiar with it is the state government agency responsible for the enforcement of North Carolina’s fishing, hunting, trapping and boating laws.

    At CBTW, we work under the NCWRC State Guidelines in the protection of the Endangered and Threatened Sea Turtle Species that visit our beach and monitor the nests that are laid. We receive specific and detailed training from NCWRC experts and we also receive very specific directives about what we can and cannot do in our work protecting turtles in order to align with the guidelines.

    As CBTW covers the east side of the island, we work closely with Oak Island Sea Turtle Protection Program that covers the west side of Oak Island. These two groups are the only official groups authorized by NCWRC.

    We do not have any paid employees or Marine Biologists on staff. We operate purely on donated time and support from our community. Our Volunteers range from retirees, those still in the work force, empty nesters and young families still raising children.

    To keep the public informed of our efforts, we share educational information when we are monitoring at the nest sites, and post regularly on our Facebook Page (drop us a hello!) and on our Website. You can also find us at the OKI Farmer’s Market and various in person events.

    Our rewards are in the successes of the nests on our beach, seeing the turtle population increase over the years and the ever increasing support we gain from the public. We welcome new volunteers each year!

    We appreciate the support of the Town of Caswell Beach, their employees and residents, who work hand in hand with CBTW to ensure that Caswell Beach remains a Sea Turtle Sanctuary!

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • July 20, 2023 – So Windy!

    We guess the turtles decided to stay in the water because of the storms. Our volunteer teams braved the 18+ mph winds to monitor our nests and greet visitors.  We only had 1 False Crawl and it was a LONG one!

    There were a lot of raindrops on the nest tops and runways, but it appears we have not had an emergence yet.  That’s probably a good thing with as rough as the ocean was last night!  NC has not yet reported any emergences at this time. 

  • July 19, 2023 – Bobsey Twins! #77 & #78

    We had 2 Nests and 1 False Crawl today.  Both nesting Mamas had the same crawl width!

    Nest #77 was laid safely and VERY Deep!  Gary said it was the deepest nest he has dug and he has dug a lot of nests!  He was shoulder deep at the top of the eggs.  It was laid in a safe location.

    Nest #77
    Crawl Width:  84cm/33″

    We received a call late last night about Nest #78.  (Mama had been in the process for over 45 minutes, so we figured we would miss it if we went out.)  It was in a safe location, but sadly onlookers walked all over the crawl and even on top of the nesting area.  

    Nest #78
    Crawl Width:  84cm/33:

    The False Crawl Mama walked around just above the high tide line and returned to the ocean.

  • July 18, 2023 – Tuesday Twofer! #75 & 76

    We had two Nests and 1 False Crawl today.  The False Crawl width was just 1 cm difference from Nest #75, so it was most likely the same turtle.

    Nest #75 was laid in a sloughing dune that had collapsed after the Mama left.  105 eggs were relocated to a safer area.

    Nest #75

    Crawl Width:  101cm/37.5″

    Nest #76 was laid low at the high tide line.  105 eggs were relocated up to the dune area.  A visiting family enjoyed watching the process!

    Nest #76
    Crawl Width:  93cm/36.5″

    According to seaturtle.org, NC has not had an emergence yet.  NC’s first nest was laid at Cape Lookout on May 6th!  We may be waiting another week or so!

  • July 17, 2023 – Turtles and Deer! #74

    We had 3 fairly obvious False Crawls and 1  Nest today.  The deer had a party at the East End.  The nest was laid above the high tide line in a popular area.  It sure is going to be interesting when we receive the DNA on these Mamas!

    Nest #74
    Crawl Width:  104cm/41″

  • July 16, 2023 – Super Busy Sunday! #71

    There were 5 False Crawls and 1 Nest today.

    The False crawls were spread out from the river side of the East Point all the way to Ocean Greens!  On one, Mama started a nest chamber (only 7 inches deep) and decided the sand was too hard.  

    Nest #73 had 97 eggs relocated to a higher location.
    Crawl Width:  98cm/38.5″

  • July 15, 2023 – Saturday Patrol

    We had 1 False Crawl and 1 possible Nesting Site today.  Patrol dug and dug and just couldn’t locate the eggs.  It will be marked and monitored, just in case.

  • July 14, 2023 – It’s a Trio! #70-#72

    We had 3 Nests today and no False Crawls!

    Nest #70 had to be relocated from the East Point hugh tie escarpment.  
    Crawl Width:  107cm/42″
    101 Eggs relocated

    Nest #71- Good high spot
    Crawl Width:  92cm/

    Nest #72 had to be relocated from below the high tide line
    Crawl Width: 103cm/42″
    104 Eggs relocated

  • July 13, 2023 – We have #69!

    After nothing yesterday, we had 1 False Crawl and 1 Nest this morning.  The Mama with the False Crawl went very high into the east dunes, but didn’t even attempt a body pit. Nest #69 was laid in a safe spot on a lower dune. 

    We were fortunate to have Karen Clark (KC) from the NC Wildlife Resources Commission ride along with us today.  She gave us some keen observations and offered some great advice!

    Nest #69
    Crawl Width:  106cm/41.7″

  • July 11, 2023 – Terrific Tuesday! #65-#68!

    Can you feel the excitement???  Did you hear the “Woo Hoo!” this morning? 

    We believe we have a GREEN turtle nest!  We sent pictures to our State leaders and they believe we do.  We will not know for sure until we have the DNA data back or we actually get to see the Hatchlings.  I have attached a comparison picture of the crawls. So exciting!!!

    We had 4 nests and no False Crawls.  

    Nest #65 had to be relocated from the East End escarpment.  She hit the wall.
    Crawl Width: 99cm/39″

    Nest #66 – Crawl Width: 110cm/43.5″

    Nest #67 – Crawl Width: 100cm/39.5″

    Nest #68 – Crawl Width: 92cm/36″

  • July 10, 2023 – Busy Monday! #62 – #64

    It was a productive morning on the beach with 3 nests and 1 False Crawl!

    Mama for Nest #62 had a few stops in the dunes before she found her safe spot. We had Turtle Ambassadors Amy and Patrick to observe the nest finding process!  Nest #63 was also laid safely, but Nest #64 had to be relocated from the high tide line (136 future Loggerheads).

    Nest #62 – Crawl Width:  84cm/33″

    Nest #63 – Crawl Width: 90cm/35″

    Nest #64 – Crawl Width:  94cm/37″

    False Crawl – Crawl Width:  86cm/34″

  • July 9, 2023 – Super Sunday! #60 & #61

    Sunday’s Morning Patrol (Joy, Kathleen, Brad, LuAnn) continues to have very busy mornings!  There were 3 False Crawls and 3 Nests today.

    2 potential Mamas crawled long ways up to steep dune faces and decided against those locations.  One of those had Coyote tracks around it.

    The other False Crawl took a long stroll through some low dunes (see last picture).  

    Both nests were laid in safe locations.

    Nest #60
    Crawl Width: 99cm/38.9″

    Nest #61
    Crawl Width:  98cm/”38.5

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • July 8, 2023 – Saturday at the Beach

    No nests to report today.  There was 1 False Crawl.  Mama came out at hide tide, hit vegetation and turned right back to the water.  There were a lot of Coyote prints on the east river beach.

    Sadly, we had a call about a dead juvenile Kemp’s Ridley at the water’s edge at Ft. Caswell’s beach.  It had been hit by a boat propeller.  Stats were taken and Morning Patrol buried it on the beach.

    YESTERDAY we had a call about a carapace skeleton on the beach in Southport.  Strand Response found an interesting puzzle of bones on the beach and some fleshy pieces in the water.  We were given permission by the State to recover the bones for educational purposesand buried the remainder on the beach.

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • July 7, 2023 – King Tide brings #59

    No Rain out there today!

    The beach was flattened out from the King Tide, but nests were safe.

    Nest #59 had to be relocated from between 2  high tide lines.  It was a very low spot prone to flooding.

    Nest #59
    Crawl Width:  102cm/40″

    One of the pictures in the file is a Sea Hare that washed up on the East End.  Poor thing was alive, but badly injured.  

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • July 6, 2023 – Rain brings #57 & #58!

    Wish we could say we beat the rain, but we didn’t!  Walking and Riding Patrol got soaked, but it was worth it for the 2 nests we found!  Thankfully, both nests were laid in safe locations!

    Morning Patrol

    Nest #57
    Crawl Width:  96.5cm/37.5″

    Nest #58
    Crawl Width:  102cm/40″

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • July Update: Save the Sea Turtles Lemonade Stand!

    We would like to thank the Raiff Family for donating the proceeds from their Lemonade Stand to Caswell Beach Turtle Watch! They raised $251.00!! Great job girls!!! You are Turtley Awesome! Thank you also to the St. James PepperBark neighborhood for participating!

    We are always grateful for donations to our cause! For more information on donating, click here.

  • July 5, 2023 – We have #56!

    We had Nest #56 and 2 False Crawls this morning. One False Crawl stopped 3 times in her journey, but no eggs were located.  The other was an obvious in and out on the river beach.  She knew that wasn’t a good area!

    Nest #56 was laid safely.
    Crawl Width:  80cm/32″

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • July 4, 2023 – Happy Independence Day! #55

    We had 1 nest today.  We got a call at 11:30 last night from a beach visitor about a nesting mama.  She was headed back to the water, so we didn’t go out.  That was Nest #55.  It was in a safe location!

    There was also an  interesting False Crawl where Mama made 2 slight attempts.

    We are selling Merchandise today from 9:00-12:00 at the Caswell Beach Town Hall gravel parking lot.  Come see us!

    Nest #55:
    Crawl Width: 92cm/36″

    We hope you have a nice holiday and enjoy the festivities!

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • July 3, 2023 – Quintet! #50-#54

    WE HAD 5 NESTS TODAY and 2 false crawls!  2 of our crawls were very long with many stops and turns.  One mama even dug a chamber, left it uncovered and moved up a bit.  When in doubt, always check the last stop!

    We had several wonderful visitors out and ran into Kathy B. from Team 1!

    Nest #50 was laid nice and high.
    Crawl Width:  92cm/36″

    Nest #51 was laid safely.
    Crawl Width:  97cm/38″

    Nest #52 was relocated from the East End escarpment (111 eggs)
    Crawl Width:  94cm/37″

    Nest #53 was laid safely
    Crawl Width:  92cm/36″

    Nest #54 was laid safely
    Crawl width:  84cm/33″

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • July 2, 2023 – We have a Double Twofer! #48 & #49

    Our Mama’s stayed away from the Fireworks area last night!  We have 2 Nests and 2 False Crawls.  

    Both False Crawls had nests nearby with the same Crawl Width, so they did lay!

    False Crawl Width: 100cm/39.3″

    Nests #48
    Crawl Width: 100cm/39.3″

    False Crawl Width: 99cm/39″

    Nests #49 had to be relocated from the high tide line to the dune line.
    Crawl Width: 99cm/39″

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • July 1, 2023 – #46 & #47! Happy Oak Island Day!

    Happy Oak Island Day! We had 2 Nests today and another False Crawl.  The False Crawl was in the same area as the last 2 days, high on a dune slope.  Mama started a nest cavity and abandoned it.

    Nests #46 and #47 are in safe locations and finally in a low populated nest area!  These mamas decided to spread the joy! 

    Unfortunately, Nest #46 had HUMAN footprints on TOP of the nesting area.  This could have damaged the eggs or caused the area to be hard to “read” by Morning Patrol.  Fortunately, the eggs were found unharmed.  If you are not sure of what turtle tracks or a nesting crawl look like, please check out the gallery below to see how we mark these.

    If you come upon a Sea Turtle Crawl area, PLEASE DO NOT WALK ON THE NESTING AREA OR THE CRAWL TRACKS!

    Nest #46
    Crawl Width:  97cm/38″

    Nest #47
    Crawl Width:  92cm/36″

    Have a nice weekend and enjoy all the festivities! 

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • July – Turtle Safe Sculptures!

    Enjoy these beautiful examples of Turtle Safe sand sculptures! We can all enjoy the beach and keep Caswell Beach’s turtles safe.

    (Caswell Beach is a Turtle Sanctuary overseen by Caswell Beach Turtle Watch as part of the NC Wildlife Resources Commission.)

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • June 30, 2023 – Nests #44 & #45, another False Crawl!

    We had another frustrating False Crawl at the east end and 2 nests today.  

    The False Crawl had a similar crawl width to yesterday’s False Crawl and a similar location!  

    Nest #44 needed to be relocated from a recent high tide line up to the dune.
    Crawl Width:  84cm/33″

    Nest #45 was laid safely at the base of a dune.  She was a big Mama!
    Crawl Width:  112cm/44″

  • June 29, 2023 – Nest #43 & False Crawls

    We have Nest #43 laid at a recent high tide line, in a very badly eroded area. We relocated 131 eggs on a nearby dune.

    We also had 2 very hard to “read” False Crawls.  We called in reinforcements and the 5 of us couldn’t locate any eggs. 

    Unfortunately, there were numerous holes and fort/moats left on the beach overnight.  There were also cabana structures and a boat .  We tagged those with notes asking them to please remove their belongings from the beach at night for the safety of our turtles.

    FOR MEMBERS ONLY:  

    OKI Police were called for 1 hole on the OKI end of the beach and CB Town Hall was called about a HUGE hole that required the tractor to fill in.  Brian with CB is AWESOME!

  • June 27, 2023 – Nests #40-#42

    We had 3 nicely placed nests today and 1 False Crawl.

    Nest #40 is over the crest of a high dune.  Mama worked hard to get up there, too!
    Crawl Width:  83cm/32.5″

    Nest #41 is in a very popular area.  
    Crawl Width:  84cm/33″

    Nest #42 is finally in an area without any other nests, near the false crawls from yesterday.  YAY!
    Crawl Width:  96cm/38″

    False Crawls Width:  97cm/38″ (Nest #42 Mama?)

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • June 26, 2023 – Very Close Crawls!

    We had 2 False Crawls this morning within .3 mile of each other, similar crawl widths.  The Morning Patrol checked the Nesting Site one more time to no avail.  They tidied up the site and made it ready for watching.

    We are set up at the OKI Market today!  Come and see us!

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • June 25, 2023 – Nest #38, #39 and a Nesting Site

    WHEW!  The Morning Patrol really worked extra hard (4.5 hours) this morning!  We have Nests #38, #39, a Nesting Site and a False Crawl.  Nests #38 & #39 were fairly easy to find.  The Nesting Site, NOT SO MUCH!  They even called in the ‘Egg Whisperer’, Gary, and they had to take a break.  Teresa and Susan went back after church.  They re-evaluated the site and dug some more and still couldn’t find the eggs.  It is marked as a Nesting Site because it looked like a probable nesting area.  The area is marked like a nest with stakes and tape and will be monitored like a nest.  Thanks for your persistence Morning Patrol!!!

    All the nests were in safe locations!  

    Nest #38
    Crawl Width:  86cm/33.8″

    Nest #39
    Crawl Width:  100cm/39.3″

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • June 23, 2023 – #35, #36, #37!

    We have another Hat Trick today and 2 false crawls!  One false crawl obeyed the ‘Stay Off the Dune’ sign!

    All nests were laid in safe locations AND within several feet from other nests.

    Morning Patrol had a great opportunity to share some information with beach visitors.

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • June 22, 2023 – Nest #34 – Happy Summer!

    We had one beautiful crawl this morning which led to Nest #34.  It truly was a work of art!  Mama turtle chose to be neighbors with Nest #29.  Sisters perhaps?  

    Nest #13 had some more crab activity.  We took the wire off to check the tunnels.  Thankfully, none led to the eggs.  We replaced the wire and are hoping they don’t return!  All other nests looked good and secure.

    We were saddened by the news at Ocean Isle about the damage done to one  of their nests.  The cage over the top of the nest was stepped on and trash was left all around.  We do pick up a lot of trash some days, but we are thankful most of our beach goers show more respect for our beach and our nests!

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

    BONUS:
    We made the news again!
    Caswell Beach records three new sea turtle nests Tuesday night, bringing season total to 33

  • June 21, 2023 – Nests #31-#33. Busy Night!

    What a night!  We got a call about a nesting mama on the river beach at Ft. Caswell at 10:16 last night.  When we got there, the kids told us she had gone back to the water (we gave a quick lesson on flashlight etiquette). They said there was another turtle down the beach, so on we went.  She was really big!  The state asks us to collect data from nesting turtles if seen, so we measured her as she was covering up her eggs.  

    Her crawl width was 119cm/46.8″.  
    Her carapace width was 90cm/35.4″.  
    Her length Notch to Tip was 98cm/38.5″. 
    Her length Notch to Notch was 99cm/38.9″.  

    We marked the area and left the egg finding for Morning Patrol. This is Nest #32.

    As we were walking back, another mama came out of the water!  We think this is the mama the kids told us about first, returning to try again.  She came back when it was quiet!  Another really big one!  We watched from a distance while she did her job and were amazed at the process of digging the nest chamber with the back flippers!  She pushed up on her “tippy toes” with one flipper while the other flipper dug out about 1/4 cup of sand. It took about an hour.

    Her crawl width was 106cm/41.7″.
    Her carapace width was 88cm/34.6″
    Her length Notch to Tip was 99cm/38.9″
    Her length Notch to Notch was 100cm/39.3″

    Again, we left the nest for Morning Patrol.  This is Nest #31.

    Both nests and the False Crawl from the first attempt were in precarious locations with sloughing escarpments from erosion.  That river beach is a mess!

    Morning Patrol relocated them to safer locations.

    Another nest was found this morning, Nest #33, thankfully in a safe location!

    Crawl Width:  90.7cm/38″

    A few pictures were taken with a ‘Night Sight’ setting on my phone last night.  It was very dark out, but you can see where the GPS Tower is a problemsome light source out there!  

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • June 20, 2023 – 3 False Crawls, again.

    We had 3 False Crawls after nothing yesterday.  Sadly, they were all in the areas where we are lacking nests, too.  

    Nest #13 had a canine (paw prints) dig into the nest area.  From the crab tracks evidence, it appears a crab pulled out 3 eggs, not the canine.  There has been crab activity there for a few days.   Our Patrol placed wire over the nest for extra protection.  It won’t keep the crabs out, though.

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • June 18, 2023 – Happy Father’s Day! #29 & #30

    Woo Hoo!  Happy Father’s Day to our “Cool Dudes”!

    We have 2 more nests.  Both nests were laid in our popular area AGAIN and are safe near the dunes.

    Nest #29
    Crawl Width:  91cm/35.8″

    Nest #30
    Crawl Width:  91cm/35.8″

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • June 17, 2023 – Nest #28

    Well our popular area has been picked by a Mama again!  Nest #28 was laid safely on the dune line.  It is very interesting that no Mamas have chosen a very large area from the Bob Spake Walkway (800 CB Rd.) all the way to 611 CB Rd. which is 8 tenths of a mile!  

    Nest #28
    Crawl Width:  70.5cm/30″

  • June 16, 2023 – And we have #27!

    It’s always nice to start morning patrol with a beautiful sunrise! Looks like the deer enjoyed the beach last night.

    Nest #27 was laid in a popular and safe area of our beach this season.  

    The tide has been high, but not high enough to reach any nests!  

  • June 15, 2023 – #25 and #26!

    After yesterday’s excitement we have 2 more nests to add to the count!

    Nest #25 was laid safely up in a dune line.  The crawl width was tricky as she crawled completely over her incoming tracks.  Best estimate:  112cm/44″

    Nest #26 was safely and conveniently laid.  The eggs were not very deep!
    Crawl Width:  95cm/37.5″

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • June 14, 2023 – A Kemp’s Ridley Nest! #24

    We were BLESSED again today with a daytime nester!!! Special thanks to the Carter Family for calling to let us know! This time it was a Kemp’s Ridley! Kemp’s are the smallest, rarest and most endangered of all the sea turtles. They typically lay their nests during the day. She was finished with her whole process in just about 30 minutes and left us with 104 eggs! We relocated the eggs from the high tide line to the dune line for safety. We had our first Kemp’s nests 2 years ago (2 nests). We wonder if it is the same Mama?! Maybe our DNA Testing will tell us!

    Please note that the photographer was at least 25 feet away from the turtle at all times. Pictures are zoomed or cropped.

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • June 13, 2023 – Nest #23

    This mama had a beautiful crawl!  The nest is located in a safe location on a low dune line.  The Morning Patrol was persistent in finding those eggs as the nest cavity was off to the side a bit!

    Nest #23
    Crawl Width:  102cm/40″

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • June 12, 2023 – We had Twins! Up to 22!

    Two more nests today laid within several yards of each other!

    Nest #21 was laid high in a dune.
    Crawl Width: 98cm/38.5″

    Nest #22 had 122 eggs relocated from between two high tide lines up to the dune line.

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • June 11, 2023 – Big Morning! Quintuplets! Nests # 16-20

    We have Quintuplets!  Today we have 5 new nests and 4 False Crawls!!!  Some of those False Crawls were similar widths to our nests, so Mama may have tried a few times to find the perfect place.

    Karen Clark (KC) from NCWRC rode along with the Morning Patrol and she was not disappointed!  How great it was to have her expertise and advice!

    SPECIAL THANKS to the Morning Patrol, Walking Patrol and additional helpers today!  That was a long morning!

    Nest #16 is in a safe location near the bottom of a dune. 
    Crawl Width:  94cm/37″

    Nest #17, safe location
    Crawl Width: 33″

    Nest #18, also safe
    Crawl Width: 33″

    Nest #19 had to be relocated from an area known to have water inundation from the street above.
    Crawl Width: 41″

    Nest #20, safe location
    Crawl Width: 106cm/41.5″

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • June 10, 2023 – Nest #15

    We have Nest #15 – laid in a safe location!

    Crawl Width:  80.4cm/33″

    Interesting occurrence:  The egg that was used for DNA was elongated and had 2 yolks.  The eggshell was very thin and broke inside the nest.  We will be asking our resources NCWRC about this in our next meeting!

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • June 7, 2023 – More False Crawls? #14!

    UPDATE:
    We try to double check any of our false crawls that are not obivous “U-turns”. After rechecking, the highest crawl was actually a nest! We have Nest #14! We are so happy that Mama was finally able to lay that clutch! After laying she crawled all over the top of the nest making it harder to find!

    EARLIER THIS MORNING:
    It’s been a quiet couple of days, with a very high King Tide, full moon and all types of weather.

    This morning we saw sunshine and some new activity with 3 False Crawls.  The crawl widths were about the same width (2 exactly) and were very near each other, so it was probably the same Mama attempting to lay her eggs.  The very high tides have made the sand undesirable and there are escarpments that are difficult to climb. 

    We hope she returns tonight!


    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • June 3, 2023 – Lucky #13!

     We are up to Lucky #13 for our nest counts!

    New morning patrol team member, Karen, located her first nest!  Nest #12 was laid in a safe location.  

    Nest #12:
    Crawl Width:  80.4 cm/33″

    Nest #13 was also located in a safe location.  It will be highly visible to many visitors.  Mama was a small one!

    Nest #13:
    Crawl Width:  70.3 cm/30″

    Are you excited, yet??!!  The end of the incubation period for the first several nests won’t be until the middle of July.  We can be patient!


    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • June 1, 2023 – Nest #11

    Good morning!

    We had 1 obvious False Crawl this morning.  Mama was on the small side.  
    Crawl Width:  85 cm/ 33.5″.

    Nest #11 was laid way up to the bottom of a dune, very safe area.
    Crawl width:  93 cm//37″

    Looks like we are moving steadily along!

    Officer Mike left us a stuffed turtle Key Chain for the buggy!  So sweet!

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03)

  • May 31, 2023 – Daytime Nest! #10

    WOW!  We were blessed today with a daytime nester!  We got the call a little before 4:00 that a Mama turtle had come ashore.  When we got there she had already climbed over a dune and begun digging her egg chamber.  This process took over an hour!  Many beach goers got a once in a lifetime experience for sure!  We were thankful for the help of Oak Island Sea Turtle Protection Program for helping us out at the site!

    Nest #10 (Data we will share with the State)
    Crawl Width:  96 cm/37.8″
    Curved Measurements:
    Carapace length Notch to Notch:95 cm
    Carapace length Notch to Tip: 97 cm
    Carapace Width: 93 cm

    She was scanned for tags and none were found. (OKI has a newer model scanner so they helped out!)

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • May 28, 2023 – Triple Crown! Nests #7-9

    The rain cleared and we have 3 nests!  All were laid in safe locations!

    Nest #7 was in the same region as yesterday’s false crawl and very high in the dune. Nests #8 & #9 were next to each other, one house width apart! Maybe they are related?

    Nest #7: Crawl Width:  90.8 cm/38.5″
    Nest #8: Crawl Width:  90.4 cm/37″
    Nest #9: Crawl Width: 100.4 cm/41″

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • May 27, 2023 – False Crawl #3

    Mama turtle crawled way up to the dunes, walking around a washed up log, but decided not to lay her eggs. Poor thing!

    All the nests have been safe from tidal overwash.  The river beach had more erosion, though.

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • May 26, 2023 – Nest #6!

    The weather didn’t keep Mama #6 away!  She crawled up a nice dune and laid her eggs deep!  

    Thanks to Teresa and Joy for heading out in the rain/wind!

    Nest #6:
    Crawl Width:105cm/41.3″

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • May 25, 2023 – Nest #4 & #5!

    It was a beautiful day for 2 new nests! 

    Nest #4 had to be relocated from the East River Beach.  There were 144 eggs!  Mama dropped one along the way and it rolled down the dune a bit.  We moved the eggs to the ocean side.  

    Nest #5 had a beautiful crawl and body pit, but the eggs were hard to find!  Mama evidently hasn’t read the handbook!  We called in reinforcements (Gary and Susan) and Gary “The Egg Whisperer” found them right away!  Thanks, Gary!  

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03)

    Nest #4

    Nest #5

    Nest #5

  • May 24, 2023 – Nest Adoption Update

    We have had a tremendous response for Nest Adoptions already and the 2023 season has only just begun! We very much appreciate the support!

    Our Caswell Beach turtles are not coming in as fast as we would like, so at this time we are suspending turtle nest adoptions until further notice. Once we can be sure that we can honor the requests already submitted we will reopen our adoption program.

    That said, we are grateful for any donations to help fund our efforts. If you would like to make a donation you can send your check made out to “Caswell Beach Turtle Watch” and mail to Caswell Beach Turtle Watch, PO Box 201, Oak Island, North Carolina 28465.

    THANK YOU FOR YOUR UNDERSTANDING!

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • May 23, 2023: Nest #3!

    Morning Patrol found Nest #3 just above a high tide line in a narrow eroded area.  They relocated 142 eggs to a safer location!

    I was reminded to add the crawl width of the mamas in our report so here they all are:

    Nest #3:
    Relocated: 142 eggs
    Crawl Width: 90 cm/35 inches

    Nest #2:
    Insitu (original location)
    Crawl WIdth:  94cm/37 inches

    Nest #1:
    Insitu
    Crawl Width:  90 cm/35 inches

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03)

  • May 22, 2023 – Nest #2!

    We have Nest #2!  Mama laid in a beautiful and safe spot!  Enjoy the pictures!

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • May 21, 2023 – Nest #1!

    Happy Sunday!

    We have Nest #1!

    Mama picked a nice safe place for her babies, too.

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03).

  • May 19, 2023 – We have activity!

    They are finally here!!! We had 2 False Crawls this morning! The rain must have been too annoying for them to lay. Thanks to our running friends Sue and Steve for alerting us to them. The crawls were right at last night’s high tide line and very hard to see on this cloudy day. We are thankful we had a break in the rain to patrol! Hopefully we will have a nest or two tomorrow!

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03)

  • Happy Mother’s Day!

    We still have no nests or false crawls to report after 2 full weeks of patrolling.  They will come, but it’s hard to be patient!  Check out seaturtle.org to see the latest progress for turtles in NC.

  • May 1-7 Update: Quiet and Chilly!

    It has been a chilly and very quiet start to Nesting Season!  We will let you know when we get a nest or a false crawl.  NC received its first nest 5-6-23 on Masonboro Island!  In the meantime, we hope you enjoy these sunrise pictures!

  • Stranded Sea Turtles – Spring 2023

    This Spring we have responded to several stranded sea turtles.  Sadly, 2 fairly large Loggerhead Turtles and 1 juvenile Green Turtle were found deceased.  3 others were taken to Rehab. 

    Pearl is a juvenile Green Turtle that had washed up on Caswell Beach on April 2nd.  She was covered with mud and algae which indicates she had been sedentary for quite some time.  She was probably a Cold Stunned survivor from the winter.  We transported her to The Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center where she is still being cared for. Cold Stunned turtles have to recover from many different issues, so it could be several weeks or even months before release is possible.

    Pearl

    Precious Coral is a juvenile Kemp’s Ridley Turtle who had been badly caught on a fishing hook on April 7th. We transported her to the KBSTRRC and assisted the Director with removing the hook. She recovered quickly and was released on April 11th!

    Precious Coral


    Jargoon is a juvenile Kemp’s Ridley Turtle who had been hooked twice on April 29th! One hook was in the mouth and the other was wrapped around a flipper. She was transported to the KBSTRRC for hook removal and treatment. She also recovered quickly and was able to be released on May 2nd!

    Jargoon


    IF YOU ACCIDENTALLY HOOK A TURTLE WHILE FISHING, PLEASE CALL US! 910-368-6323

  • May 1, 2023 – It’s Turtle Season!

    Happy First Day of Sea Turtle Nesting Season! 

    No tracks or nests today, but it is early and was a bit chilly this morning!  Sadly our patrol did find a deceased juvenile Kemp’s Ridley sea turtle that had been the victim of a boat strike.  Please call us if you see a mama, hatchling or stranded turtle or if you accidentally hook a turtle while fishing!  

    910-368-6323

    **This conservation work for protected sea turtles on Caswell Beach is authorized by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (ES Permit 23ST03)