Tuesday, August 21st
Inventory Results
Nest 20 was found by Jim and Jo Eisenhauer, Kathy Hanson and Judy Morr. It hatched in 52 days.
Shells 96
Unhatched eggs 7
Dead hatchlings 3
Live hatchlings 0
Total live 93
Hatch success 84.2%
Emergence success 81.5%
Friday, August 24th
Inventory Results
Nest 21 was found by Gary Holtz, Rob Jerome, Cathrine Scully and Mike Vinson. It hatched in 50 days.
Shells 85
Unhatched eggs 9
Dead hatchlings 6
Live hatchlings 1
Total live 79
Hatch success 85.0%
Emergence success 78.0%
Nest 23 was found by Ruby Jenkins, Pam Salvestrini, Mary Van Deusen and Lynda Zegers. It hatched in 49 days.
Shells 80
Unhatched eggs 24
Dead hatchlings 0
Live hatchlings 0
Total live 80
Hatch success 75.4%
Emergence success 75.4%
Saturday, August 25th
On Saturday, August 25, we were visited by Boy Scout Troop 316 from Lugoff, South Carolina. They drove 145 miles to visit our beaches to learn about sea turtles and dolphins. After camping at the Boy Scout Campgrounds at Wadmalaw Island, they traveled to Seabrook Island and were hosted by Terry Fansler and Gayle Evans. They started their day by hiking to North Beach to watch the dolphins strand feed. Unfortunately, a reckless boater had preceded them by a few minutes. The boat roared through the river at high speed and the dolphins headed for cover. The Dolphin Conservation Education representative on duty (Carrie) was able to provide the Scouts with lots of information about the dolphins but they never got to witness the strand feeding.
The group then headed down the beach to visit a sea turtle nest that was due to hatch. After providing an overview of the sea turtle hatching process and the role of the Turtle Patrol, Terry decided to check the sand for hardness due to the overnight rains to make sure the hatchlings could get out. When Gayle loosened the sand there were a few hatchlings already trying to break through the crusted sand. So, Terry, Gayle and the Boy Scouts helped escort the hatchlings to the ocean. The Troop Leader, Wayne Albright, said that seeing the hatchlings was an experience the Troop would long remember.
-Submitted by Gary Fansler