Still 25 active incubating nests remain: Boca Grande Sea Turtle Assoc.

BY ARLENE HALL, BGSTA SECRETARY As of September 7, the Boca Grande Sea Turtle Association’s (BGSTA) “completion countdown” is at 25 nests. 21 of those are loggerhead nests and four are green turtle nests. While five nests were cleared off the countdown since my last report, only one of them had hatched last week. During […]

BY ARLENE HALL, BGSTA SECRETARY

As of September 7, the Boca Grande Sea Turtle Association’s (BGSTA) “completion countdown” is at 25 nests. 21 of those are loggerhead nests and four are green turtle nests. While five nests were cleared off the countdown since my last report, only one of them had hatched last week. During the inventory of another one of those nests, 72 empty shells were discovered, indicating that it had also hatched at some previous point. With all the heavy evening and morning rain on the island over the past couple of weeks, it is not surprising that those tracks were not observed during our patrols, but it is always a welcome sight to see during an inventory.

The other three nests had reached the 70-day incubation limit but were not inventoried, either because of Florida Fish and Wildlife (FWC) protocol or because the egg chamber could not be located due to accretion (sand accumulation) caused by Tropical Storm Debby.

We also closed out another zone this past week, bringing the total to three zones closed and five still active. Zone 6, located in the middle of the island, is one of the more active zones for turtle activity, accounting for almost 15 percent of the total nests this year, but it was hit hard by Debby. In fact, the last remaining nest in that zone was difficult to see since it was buried under almost two feet of additional sand after the storm.  

The 25 incubating nests remaining in the five active zones are still being monitored by BGSTA patrol volunteers. Surprisingly, there are more nests now than there were last year at this time after the late August visit by Hurricane Idalia, which left only eight nests on the beaches. I’ve mentioned previously how this year’s total crawl figures are so much lower than last year’s and will provide a final comparison as we wrap up the season. In the meantime, it appears that this year’s mammalian predators are about as active as they were last year, with 88 depredations so far (compared to 92 by this time last season). It seems that some things don’t change!

A reminder

If you see a hatchling or an adult sea turtle on the beach that seems to be struggling (e.g., is lethargic, keeps crawling in circles, has an injury, etc.) or a hatchling that is heading away from the water, make sure it is not in any immediate danger (like crawling across a busy street) and then immediately contact:

• BGSTA (941) 999-7177 

• FWC  (888) 404-FWCC 

At Florida State Parks: 

Gasparilla: 42 loggerhead

Cayo Costa: 561 loggerhead, 1 green turtles

Don Pedro: 199 loggerhead, 28 green turtles

Stump Pass: 273 loggerhead, 1 green