Wednesday, September 28 - Prep work for Hurricane/Tropical Storm Ian

 Hi All - this afternoon Steve and Barb Demusz and myself went out to Waties Island getting ready for the approaching Hurricane Ian, Tropical Storm strength by the time it reaches our coast.  We follow SCDNR guidelines which require the removal of poles. signs, metal cages - we do not want to contribute to the debris in the ocean.

The following was done 

• Removed the PVC numbered posts along with the wooden wedge which held them in place.  The larger and heavier PVC pipes which hold the numbered posts are still present in the dunes.   These are our "Marker" posts.  
• From Marker 1 to Marker 8 - we have removed off the beach and returned to the shed all 5 gallon buckets, DNR signs, and white PVC pipes used to triangulate our nests
• Removed the DNR sign that indicates the location of Nests 26 and 27 - a red painted piece of wood was used in replacement

Red painted post marks area for Nest 26 & 27

 

• Removed the white pvc pipe that marked our "suspicious area" - no replacement marker was used

 

The "Suspicious" area

 

• PN07 - Removed the DNR sign. This post was buried in about 2 1/2 feet of sand.  The LOA for this nest has been given directions to change the status from "Possible Nest" to a False Crawl
• Nest #23 - Removed the metal cage and DNR sign.  This nest has been remarked with red painted wood posts. This nest today is 59 days old, but it has been over washed a number of times through the summer.  The nest may no longer be viable.  We also used pieces of driftwood to "decorate" the area.

 

One of the posts for Nest 23 - we also placed driftwood for others to see

Looking from the nest site to the dune

 

• Nest #20 - Removed the DNR sign, the cage is still on this nest located on top of the dune.  This nest is 67 days old today.  If it does not emerge in the next day or two, it will be inventoried on Sunday.

 

Nest 20 - view from top of dune.  The white post is the "sleeve" that

 holds Marker #8

Nest #20 - still has its cage

Nest 20 - view from the bottom of the dune

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The most important thing for our LOAs and Volunteers is to stay smart and safe.  The forecast calls for a lot of rain, and potential high winds and coastal flooding.  Please do not go out to the island in the predawn darkness.  Until this Tropical Storm passes, please wait for daylight so you can see what the surroundings are - this could also include downed trees.

We all know how the  causeway road floods.  It is not necessary to go out if the weather is bad to check on  Nest #20.  As earlier stated, if it does not show signs of emergence, we will be doing an inventory on Sunday, Day 70.

Narrative and pictures - Leslie

Tuesday , September 27, 2022

 It was a beautiful cool  morning. Not much new. Except dolphins. Lots of them! Haven’t seen one out there in a long time. Also two big bunches of balloons.

PN#7 sign still deep! The reed was out. GC hole in front.
#23 was washed over again. Large GC hole inside.
#20 has sand blown over it and it is very smooth.

The girls also found a hatchling. Dried up and hard. By nest #27.

Nest 26 and/or 27(?) Inventory 9-22-2022

Well, it was yet again another crazy morning on Waties Island. We had a small group due to no students, but Erin brought guests and former walkers Mario and Rickey to help out with the inventory. We all drove up to the nest and checked PN7 and Nest 23 along the way. Unfortunately, there is still no sign of them hatching any time soon. Because we knew about how bad the mosquitoes would be on the back side of the dune, most of us wore head nets, long sleeves and pants, and a LOT of bug spray. We all climbed over the dune and Mario quickly started digging where the hole that was found on Monday was. 

Mario & Kim starting the digging process. 

Realizing how deep the hole actually is, and that we didn't think we were digging in the right spot.

We all were prepared to find a nest quickly and had buckets for the eggshells so we could sort and count them on the beach side of the dune. It wasn't long before a dead hatchling was found in the hole. Rickey and Mario continued to dig where the hatchling was, hoping to find eggshells soon. Unfortunately, after all efforts had been made to find the cavity, including using shovels and demolishing that part of the dune, no other hatchlings or eggshells were found. 

Using a shovel to break the wall of the dune, hoping to find signs of a nest. 

Rickey and Leslie coming to the conclusion that the nest is nowhere to be found. 

One last check!

Determined guests, Mario (left) & Rickey (Right) with all the sand they dug.

While waiting for the group to find something. Kim decided to walk around the back side of the dune looking for any signs of hatchlings or eggshells. She found a single eggshell on the sand about 25' from where we originally were digging. Out of curiosity, she decided to dig there and about 8" down, she found more eggshells, a dead hatchling and an entire nest cavity. Oddly, there was no sign of there being a nest there, so no one thought to dig there. The nest was inventoried, and the results were as follows: 101 hatched, 7 unhatched and 1 dead hatchling; a 935% hatch rate and 92.5 emergence. 

Finally finding eggs, just not where we thought they'd be.

Lorna counting every eggshell we found.

Final results of nest 27(?)

The dead hatchlings from each area were used in separate DNA Vials created by Erin and that is the only way we will determine if there are two nests or one, and we just misjudged where it was located. In all it was a long morning and were very thankful for our two guests that were very hands-on and determined to find a nest!

Our Halloween Hatchling

Narrative by Erin and Kim, photos by Erin, Leslie & Kim.

Wednesday, September 21 - Inventory of Nest #18

 Another beautiful morning on Waties Island - the view that never gets old.  We headed out right before sunrise.  Along with our volunteers, we had a small group of Coastal Carolina University Sea Turtle Club members.  We walked about a half mile up to Nest #18, located between Markers 3 and 4.  This nest was laid on July 19 - one of two nests laid that day.  This nest was troublesome in finding the nest cavity.  When probing you could hear the crunch of roots.  In the end, with some expert help, the nest cavity was found.  This nest emerged on September 18th, Day 61.

 

Students started the digging with help moving the sand, from other students.  Soon after the digging started an unhatched egg was found.

The students assisting in the sorting with help from our LOAs  and veteran Volunteers.  The outcome of Nest #18 - 40 Hatched, 59 Unhatched - 40% Hatched and Emergence percent for both.  The students also opened a few eggs, in one we found a pipped hatchling, others were very yolky, and smelly.

Here's a picture of Nest #23 - it seems it has a slight depression, but this nest has been washed over a number of times, but miracles do happen.

The other interesting item of interest we saw today were these tiny tracks.  Possibly a baby Raccoon?  We know we have adult Raccoons on the beach, so possibly a young one??

9/19/2022 Wild Nest Over Dune aka Nest 26

 It was a beautiful start to the morning, with the sunrise greeting us as soon as we got to the beach. With two guests, we had plenty of people to patrol the whole island. 

We all walked the longer end of the beach, with some stopping wherever they'd like along the way. Leslie, JoAnn and Erin walked all the way to m8 to ensure all nests got checked, others stopped around m4 or m5. Nest 23 and PN7 looked normal, and we could still see the tracks from Nest 18's emergence.

 

Leslie, JoAnn and Erin got right past m6 when they noticed hatchling tracks in the sand. They followed the tracks and noticed they went up and over to the back side of the dune. When at the top of the dune, Erin noticed some live hatchlings behind the dune, trying to find their way to the water. JoAnn grabbed a bucket and sand, and the rest of the volunteers met the others to help look for hatchlings.

The view of hatchling tracks from the top of the dune looking towards the water.

The view of hatchling tracks up the back of the dunes, from behind the dunes.

With all hands-on deck, all the volunteers and guests walked all over the back of the dunes finding hatchlings everywhere they looked. Once it seemed like they found them all, they looked for the nest and noticed it on the back side of the dune, where it would have been very difficult for a hatchling to get to the water. 46 hatchlings were found on the back side of the dune, and 4 were found on the beach side, totaling 50 hatchlings found. 

Volunteers and guests searching everywhere for hatchlings and the nest.

Finally, the nest cavity!

The area patrolled for hatchlings. 

All hatchlings were released into the ocean, and it was a sight to see. After releasing the hatchlings, the nest was marked, and the rest of the island was patrolled. 

Releasing all the babies!

 

On the way back to the shed we also noticed a dead female stingray on the beach near m3. It was an exciting morning for all of those involved. 

Narrative by Erin

Photos by Leslie & Erin