Wednesday, May 31st - No Sea Turtle Nesting

The Wednesday Volunteers had a grey, cloudy, chilly walk.  We were so hoping to find a crawl, and/or a nest.  No luck today.  Here's what we did see out on the island this morning.  The Ghost Crabs have discovered Nest #1 - small crabs so far.

American Oyster Catcher - note the long bright orange bill

A handsome fellow

We ran into this feisty Ghost Crab

Christine found a keeper - nice Knobbed Whelk

Small GC hole by the reed, Nest #1

Waties Island performs research and management activities regarding sea to conservation in accordance under SCDNR Permit Number: MTP500.

Monday, May 29th, Nature day on Waties

 No turtles but lots of great sights on the island!

Dark blue clouds in front of us all the way up the island.

Jewel found this living starfish,  which she returned to the water.

Donna found a living sea hare (slug) 

She googled it to find that it needs water to breathe, and that you should not pick up with your hands.  It is slimy and can expel toxins.  So with gloves and a trowel she took it back to the ocean .

He would lift his head up and you could see small  sensory tentacles (ears).  

 

Retuned to the ocean he spread out a little.

On the way back to shed we saw theses beautiful Wood Storks.  

Happy Memorial Day from Waties Island!

Sunday, May 28th, False Crawl #3

 

We had a delayed start due to inclement weather. Rainy on and off, but much brighter than expected. The sun actually did peek at us, so it is still up there.

We got a little excited when we saw the crawl, we didn’t even notice it has started to drizzle.  But Mario quickly informed us that it was a false crawl.  She was 33” wide, came right in on the left, went up to top of dune, did a little zigzag and came right back down.  

  

No body pit, no disturbance of sand - would have been a perfect spot for a nest!

She wasn’t there long, both crawls same length.  This nest is about 200ft. before Nest #01.

Waties Island performs research and management activities regarding sea to conservation in accordance under SCDNR Permit Number: MTP500.

,

Cold, Rainy and Windy Day for False Crawl #2

Predictions for dire weather kept us from an early morning patrol. A mid-morning break in the storm gave us a chance to quickly check for any new sea turtle activity.

Glad we were able to get out there: A new crawl was spotted near the upper end of the island. Unfortunately it was not a nesting attempt; only a quick in and out. Maybe she's checking the site for another try tonight!

In and out; no nest today

Up to the dunes, left turn for a few feet and back to the ocean

 

Waties Island performs research and management activities regarding sea turtle conservation in accordance under SCDNR Permit Number: MTP500.

Friday, May 26 - False Crawl #1

 Dreary, windy, chilly, drizzly. But, it’s Waties😊 And a crawl😊…. But no nest😞

33” crawl located midway on the island, about 100 ft before Nest #1. Appears she came in just before high tide. Incoming and outgoing tracks approximately the same length. Crawled up to the foot of the dune. Wind and rain had obscured much of the area. No real defined body pit. There was a high area next to her turning around spot, but no evidence of thrown sand or disrupted vegetation. 

We were encouraged by early probing when the probe dropped into a soft spot, and, with high hopes, we started digging. We soon realized we were probing and digging in an area where the dune face had fallen in a “landslide” resulting in a large area of very soft sand. In several spots the probe would go in up to the handle, and dug up sand kept falling into the holes. 

 We did probe and dig extensively, but were unable to locate a nest. Perhaps this was a case where mama was able to determine the sand at that spot would be unable to provide the support needed to complete a nest, causing her to move on. Hopefully she will return tonight! 

, 

,

              

                                               Nest #1 resting comfortably 

 

Waties Island performs research and management activities regarding sea turtle conservation in accordance under SCDNR Permit Number: MTP500.

 

Wednesday, May 24th - 2023 Nest #1

I had emailed the Wednesday Volunteers Tuesday evening asking them to cross their fingers and toes - and it worked!  We have Nest #1 on Waties Island - Yeah!  She came in at high tide, crawled up to the face of the dune, turned and found a nice high place on the beach to nest.  Her body pit was textbook - crescent shape, thrown sand, so finding the nest chamber was done quickly. She left on the receding tide. She must have barnacles on the bottom of her shell, you can see the drag marks.

 Our new volunteer Kathy, got to experience her first nest on Waties, digging for the egg, and doing the DNA sample, with help from Jo Anne.  Leslie  did the data recording, and Valerie assisted and took pictures.  It takes a village.

It was a cool crisp 49 degrees on the beach this morning.  Low tide, very little trash

So happy we have a nest!  Text by Leslie P, pictures by Valerie W. and Leslie P.

Waties Island performs research and management activities regarding sea turtle conservation in accordance under SCDNR Permit Number: MTP500. 

Good Morning from the marsh

Here comes the sun

  

 

She crawled to the base of the dune, and turned

Incoming crawl

 

Outgoing crawl

 

Note the drag marks on the bottom of her shell

 

Body Pit

Getting ready to process

We have our game plan

Leslie Probing for nest chamber

Leslie and Cathy digging to find top of nest

Cathy holding the egg we will use for DNA

Cathy and Jo Anne taking care of the DNA

Eggshell in the vial, used for DNA research

Finishing up GPS Coordinates, Leslie Y data recorder

2023 Nest #1

WISTMP Weekly Summary Ending, Sunday, May 21st

 Hi All - I wish I had better news, but we still have not had a False Crawl or a nest on Waties Island.  I checked our historical records, just to give everyone some hope, this week may be our lucky week.  The first nest in 2022 was May 25th, 2020 our first nest was on May 19th.  I skipped 2021 since our first nest was really early, May 6th.

South Carolina Summary of Nests
Nests: 383 (381)
  In Situ: 206
  Relocated: 177 (46.2%)
  Incubating: 383
  Excluded: 2
False Crawls: 466
First Nest: Cape Island (Loggerhead) 2023-05-02
Last Nest: Lighthouse Island (Loggerhead) 2023-05-21

As stated in previous emails, most of the nests have been on the southern beaches, but this past week, nests have been laid on beaches closer to Waties Island, both in SC and NC. 

Wishing all Volunteer Teams Good Luck this week

Wednesday, May 17th - Beautiful warm morning, no turtle action today

The Wednesday volunteers had a great morning on the beach, sunny to start, warm, and a nice breeze.  The clouds moved in, no rain on the beach, thank goodness.

No turtle action, lots of Cannonball jellyfish on the beach.  The flock of Red Knots were on the beach feeding.  See the Friday post, Kim T gives a nice summary on these birds that are endangered due to loss of habitat and food sources.

Just normal type of trash was picked up, and I found the biggest balloon I have seen, it was stuck in the dunes.  Scoping out the dunes and finding good places for any nests we may have to move this year.

 Trees left by Hurricane Ian, last October.

 

 

 

 The flock of Red Knots still enjoying Waties Island hospitality, feeding on Coquina Clams.

 

Lots of Cannonball Jellyfish

Wind art - on the dunes

Biggest Balloon - bigger than my Ocean Trash bag

Pictures by Leslie P