Tag: Boca Grande Sea Turtle Association

Turtle Patrol: Reporting on how we report, plus ‘hidden’ disturbances

BY ARLENE HALL, BGSTA SECRETARY As I’ve mentioned in this column on many occasions, one important aspect of our duties as BGSTA turtle patrollers is to collect data for FWC. We not only collect...

Turtle report: Not at loggerheads about whether it’s a loggerhead

BY ARLENE HALL, BGSTA SECRETARY Almost daily on my turtle patrols, I’m approached by someone on the beach with questions about sea turtles and what we do for them. Two of the most common questions...

Turtle report: Thought it was false crawl, turned out to be bona fide!

BY ARLENE HALL, BGSTA SECRETARY When people learn that I volunteer with BGSTA’s Turtle Patrol, so many of them say how much they would love to do that too, so I figured I would bring you along...

Turtle report: Disoriented hatchlings don’t need blazing lights on beach

BY ARLENE HALLBGSTA SECRETARY Last week, I mentioned that our earliest loggerhead nests had started to hatch. Generally, loggerhead nests will incubate for 45 to 70 days. If the nests are up in...

Turtle report: Please stop pulling up yellow stakes protecting nests

BY ARLENE HALLBGSTA SECRETARY The most exciting part of turtle nesting season began last week, when hatchlings from the first couple of loggerhead nests started emerging from the sand. With the...

IN THE SPOTLIGHT: From Illinois crime lab to turtle volunteer, Arlene Hall

Her byline in the Beacon should be enough of a clue that Arlene Hall is someone worth getting to know. She is the one who has been writing about the happenings with the Boca Grande Sea Turtle Association....

Turtle report: Nest predators appear this week, snacking on eggs

BY ARLENE HALLBGSTA SECRETARY At long last, the first green sea turtle crawl was documented on Gasparilla Island during the week ending June 22nd! It turned out to be a nest and it occurred on...

Turtle report: Downpours and lightning do not deter volunteers

BY ARLENE HALLBGSTA SECRETARY The rainy weather system of the past week had some impact on the BGSTA’s turtle patrol activities as well as on established nests. Most mornings, the BGSTA volunteers...

Turtle report: Fancy stakes for turtle adoption

BY ARLENE HALLBGSTA SECRETARY A stroll down the beaches from around 19th Street south to the parking lot by the state park will reveal some brightly colored stakes being used to protect incubating...

Sea Turtle Report: Reminder that no Gulf sea can fill in your big dig

BY ARLENE HALLBGSTA SECRETARY With summer vacations finally here, this seems to be the prime time of year to create elaborate, towering sandcastles perhaps surrounded by a deep, wide moat that...